Brandy Saldana – Page 47 – Will Bake for Shoes

Date
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- Outfit

Feathers

Posted on September 5, 2013by Brandy Saldana

Feather Print Back Cut Out Dress Alice Moon Collection via LE TOTE | Mint Flats DV by Dolce Vita | Leather Jacket Members Only | Feather Chandelier Earrings Forever 21 | Sunglasses DG | Photos by Vivian DoAnother outfit featuring an item from LE TOTE. This feather print dress came in my first box from them and I absolutely loved the print! Lucky for me, I had also recently purchased the Mint Dolce Vita Flats, and it matched the mint in the dress perfectly. I couldn’t get enough of the print and added my feather earrings to complete the look.
I had the leather jacket on all day and could not decided if the cut out in the back was subtle enough to wear and have it exposed at work. Should I have worn a tank top? This dress is not something I envisioned wearing to a club, but maybe it isn’t the best thing to wear to an office environment either now that I think about it. My bra strap was showing and I thought it was something Carrie would do so I didn’t feel it was too tacky. I loved the shape and print of the dress and the exposed back was a little bit unexpected but fun. What do you think?
On another note, I am so excited for my upcoming trip to Japan. Just a few more days and I’ll be out of the country! I am struggling with figuring out what to pack for 2 weeks while trying not to take too many things. If only LE TOTE could send me my wardrobe to my hotel in Tokyo so I could be well dressed everyday. *sigh* I am not finding too much (useful) information on what to wear in the summer so I plan on doing a post of what I take once I figure that out. My goal is to try to take plenty of pieces that can be mixed and matched and with space left over in my suitcase. Hopefully I’ll still have plenty of room leftover for all of the goodies that I’ll want to bring back, so wish me luck!

Cupcakes

Mr.Roboto Cupcakes

Posted on September 3, 2013by Brandy Saldana

I made a robot out of cupcakes for a student intern’s last day at our office. He had graduated and was able to work the Summer until the beginning of the new semester. I wanted to make something he would like, so I chose to make this Robot from the What’s New, Cupcake? Book.
If you compare this to the one featured in the book, you’ll notice it is not an exact look alike. Sometimes you have to improvise, and I did that by using the yellow licorice to connect the arms instead of pretzel sticks. I also used spice drops rolled out and cut into circles as the knee caps instead of Nilla Wafer cookies.
The Robot’s frame is made out of graham crackers covered in grey frosting and sprinkles. I was able to make the grey frosting by adding a few drops of black food coloring into a can of vanilla frosting.

This robot has some bling thanks to the shiny grey sprinkles and the mini M&M’s being used as dials and lights. I made the claw out of a sour Lifesaver gummy and then cutting out an opening. I personalized the cupcakes by spelling out the recipients name with the leftover M&M’s. Sometimes when I decorate cupcakes I buy a big bag of candy and only use a few of them. It made no sense for me to not use the M&M’s to spell out a name when I had 3 leftover cupcakes that I frosted just to bring for the going away party. I did however eat the bag of sour Lifesaver gummies. (Don’t worry – I shared.)

Outfit
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- Weekend

23

Posted on August 28, 2013by Brandy Saldana

Chambray Shirt Ana | Skirt H&M | Scarf Unknown | Bird Necklace Wet Seal | Pink Stud and Pearl Bracelet Forever 21 | White Bangles Coach | Natasha Petal to the Metal Bag Marc by Marc Jacobs | Pink Stud Beatrix Flats Sam EdelmanIt was my birthday yesterday! Yay me! I turned 23 and let me tell you, I still find that a little hard to believe. I can no longer sing that Taylor Swift Song 22. I still feel 22 even though I am 23 now. After working 2 full days at Caltopia, I was pretty exhausted and felt like yesterday was more of a recovery day than my birthday. Most people take the day off on their birthday, and after working those 2 long days I felt like I should have but I am in a training in SF for today and tomorrow and will be going off to Japan in September for a 2 week vacation and felt a little guilty that I’d be out of the office for so many days. I know what you are thinking What? Japan!? Why?!
Well it just so happens my sister will be studying abroad for a year at Chuo University near Tokyo and I, needing an excuse to vacation and go somewhere far, decided to take some time off to help her move to her dorm and do some sight-seeing before her first day of class. I am so excited to be going to Japan again (this will be my second time there) and being able to experience this trip with my sister!
In my last birthday post I wrote about accomplishing some goals, or resolutions, by my next birthday. When I think about what I’ve accomplished this year I feel very proud of myself for how far I’ve come. One was to have a full-time job. I accomplished that in April and love where I work. I do feel lucky to have a job so soon after graduating and being in such a positive working environment. My coworkers went all out to make me feel special yesterday by bringing me cupcakes, flowers, and gifts and for that I am extremely grateful.
My second goal was to improve the blog. I feel like it has improved tremendously since it first started and while I don’t have a consistent posting schedule, I am trying to write fewer quality posts rather than a bunch of so-so posts. I am putting a lot more of myself into my posts, so in my opinion my posts are better than when I first started. I am not as afraid of being critiqued and have been less frustrated with the world of web design and HTML.
The third goal was to be more sustainable, and that is a lot more apparent with my clothes and is slowly making its way into my lifestyle. I rarely shop at department stores now and buying new items sometimes makes me feel guilty. I feel like my wardrobe has improved tremendously by buying used items. This outfit is mostly finds from Crossroads Trading Co. (Top, Scarf and Skirt) and eBay (Flats, Bag, Sunglasses).
Now I have some new goals set for myself:
1) Spend more time with my family/friends. Blogging has opened so many doors for me and has allowed for me to go to a lot of events and meet many new people. Often times it feels like I don’t have enough time in the day to work, blog, and stay connected with people, but I want to put more of an effort in spending quality face time with the people that are important to me.
2) Be more financially aware. I have gone a little overboard shopping at thrift stores and am not really saving as much as I should for the future. I am hoping to really pay more attention to the comfortable salary I make and really make an effort to save more.
3)Travel! Now that I finally have a full-time gig I know it might be a little more difficult, but I would love to be able to take more trips and see new places. Even if it isn’t across the country, I’d like to be able to go someplace if I happen to find a good deal (and use some of the funds I will be saving up just for that!)
I am looking forward to being 23 and I hope you’ll stick around and watch as I continue growing up ( I know I am not done yet!)

Life’s a Beach…Cake

Posted on August 24, 2013by Brandy Saldana

Last week, my coworkers and I held a celebration dinner at a local pizza restaurant to celebrate a coworker’s upcoming wedding. I was commissioned to make the cake and, because it was a pretty casual event, I wasn’t restricted in making a traditional wedding cake.
This is the first cake I’ve made that wasn’t for a decorating class, and the first I’ve ever stacked! It came out a little crooked which ended up working out for me since it looked like a sand dune. I learned a lot from making this cake, so I am sure the next one will look better. One piece of advice I received in decorating cakes is people will rarely notice your mistakes. All they see is cake and what piece they want. Luckily the flavors of these cakes were pretty delicious. The top tier was lemon with a cream cheese frosting and lemon zest filling and the bottom tier was french vanilla cake with cream cheese frosting and fresh strawberries as a filling.

My inspiration for this cake came from my coworker’s love of surfing and the couple’s appreciation for nature. The “sand” is made out of crushed graham cracker and pressed against a layer of frosting. The seashells and starfish are made using a chocolate mold and pouring melted chocolate into them. To give them a more realistic look, I used small brush to add a teaspoon of cinnamon all over the shells and starfish. For the wedding cake topper, I used to shells to make a clam, squeezed in some blue frosting, and my boyfriend added the couples initials using pearl sprinkles. I am proud of all the details and how it really dressed up the cake.
Enjoy my fashion picks inspired by the chocolate seashells and starfish!

Outfit
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- Work

Dressing Up Denim

Posted on August 23, 2013by Brandy Saldana

Denim Shirt a.n.a a new approach | Yellow Skirt Banana Republic | Necklace via LE TOTE | Nude Ulltra Pumps Steve Madden
This is on of those outfits that I just threw on and I am very happy with how it turned out. I have heard of denim chambray shirts becoming a wardrobe staple because of how versatile it is and I feel this outfit proves just how versatile it is since it can very easily be dressed up.
I tucked it in to my yellow Banana Republic skirt in order to work with the colors of the necklace I rented from LE TOTE. As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, it is a clothing rental service that sends you 3 pieces of clothing and 2 pieces of jewelry for $49 a month. Not a bad way to try new things, especially if you are not a fan of shopping but still want to your wardrobe to be current.
This week has been extremely busy for me and I expect it to be difficult to be posting consistently. This Saturday I will be heading to Salinas to celebrate my Sister’s 21st Birthday/ Farewell Party. She is heading to Japan to study abroad for a year in September, and I will also be joining her for her first two weeks there! I am so excited and looking forward to this much needed vacation!
Sunday and Monday I’ll be in Berkeley running a booth for our office at Caltopia. My goal last year was to make this year a bigger success, and I already feel like it will be. I remember being so stressed out about running the booth for the first time and getting things ready at the last minute. This time it feels a lot less stressful, and it might be because I had the opportunity to really plan ahead.
I’ve been going to a lot of events as of late and doing my fair share of baking which you can catch on Instagram first hand. I originally didn’t know how Instagram would benefit me when it comes to blogging, but now I see it is the best way to keep up with what I am doing since I don’t post as often. Follow me @willbakeforshoes to stay updated with my daily adventures.
I will be updating you on more about my upcoming trip to Japan and anything else I forgot to mention here.
Hope you are having a good week,Brandy| BLOGLOVIN | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM |TUMBLR | TWITTER |

JustFab! with Stilettos and Cocktails

Posted on August 20, 2013by Brandy Saldana

I attended a meetup two weekends ago for Fashion Bloggers in the Bay Area. The event was sponsored by JustFab! and was held at Sen’s Restaurant at Embarcadero Center. I’ve been part of this Meetup group for awhile going to various events in the city, but this was the first Meetup where we were all focused on really sitting down and meeting each other. It was a great experience being able to meet like-minded people and drink cocktails while talking about our latest fashion obsession and Fashion Blogger Problems.

I met so many amazing women at the event such as Layla. She introduced me to the Fashion App My Runway. Below, Heidi introduced us to her company My Muse Box which is a subscription based beauty box where a portion of its sales give back to the community.

In the above picture, I mingled with Alyssa Moreno Voila Marie Fashionation, Esther of Esther-Lee, Chasma from Thrifted Bliss, and Alyssa Kane from Stylematic.

I struck a pose with my girl Esther above and below I am posing with Lalah of The Diva Doll Guide and Alyssa.

We all were very passionate about shoes, which made me feel like I was in heaven! The event was made even sweeter because it introduced me to JustFab! I feel like I have been living under a rock, especially since this site sells shoes, but this was my first formal introduction to the site. I like heels, but on a day-to-day basis I prefer flats, wedges, and kitten heels. I can’t rock really high, platform heels because of my fear of heights/ because I am clumsy and would fall in towering heels. I was really excited to hear that JustFab! isn’t limited just to sky-high heels, they have bags, jewelry, and clothing waiting to be bought at ridiculously fabulous prices. It would be hard not to find something you like on their site. That’s because you take a style quiz and suggestions of what you might like are made for you!

It took me awhile to decide because of all of the amazing items they had, but I finally settled on ordering the Prestige Satchel. I expect for it to arrive on Thursday. Such a long wait, but so worth it! I see myself wearing this bag with everything! It looks roomy enough for all the things I carry to work. I can’t wait to share an outfit post with this bag.

A big thank you to JustFab! for sponsoring the event, to Jia of Catwalk Chic for setting up the Meetup and to all of the Fab bloggers who attended and made the night super fun!
Until next time,Brandy| BLOGLOVIN | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM |TUMBLR | TWITTER |
Photos taken by Lucy Glover. All Rights Reserved.