Easy Chic: Comfy Dresses

With all of the holiday eating that is going on between meats & cheeses, cookies, and fancy cocktails we could all use some comfortable attire. That doesn't mean you can't look good while stuffing your face, visiting family, and driving to the country. While it is easy to slip on your favorite jeans and a nice top and necklace, it is just as easy to pull over a cute dress, throw on a cardigan, and slide into your favorite boots. Not only will you be cozy, everyone will be impressed that you are dressed a step above. The most important part of this wardrobe staple is its versatility, its comfort, and its lack of care needed (no ironing!!!!). Here are a few to get you started, mix them up by layering necklaces, scarves and cardigans. Tights are highly recommended with your favorite flats and boots.

1. Monochrome Shift
2. It's a Sweatshirt Dress!
3. Incredibly Versatile
4. Preppy Classic
5. Feminine and Flirty
6. Cool Color-block (also in all black)

Effervescent Nails!

Base Color: Essie Marshmallow
Grey Spots: Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in Wet Cement
Gold Spots: Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in Time to Shine (which appears to no longer be available, any gold will do)
Top Coat: Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat

I just used the tip of a pencil to dip in nail polish blogs that I dropped on a piece of paper...very low tech operation here in the fox den.

Eyebrow Magic - For Blondes and Redheads

Having fair coloring and being of the strawberry blonde persuasion has lead to an easy life in regard to hair removal. Thankfully, I do not have to shave my legs often, worry about furry arms or make multiple waxing appointments every month to have hair ripped from its cozy follicles. However, this comes with certain drawbacks, mainly, invisible hair that looks best visible: eyebrows and eyelashes.

For a couple of decades, I walked around with completely invisible eyebrows until I had the idea to dye my strawberry blonde hair a dark brunette. Once that was done, the lack of eyebrows was ridiculously prominent and my stylist threw some dye on them as well. Voila! What a difference it made...kind of...they were brown but very fine, though a nice coat of brown mascara remedied that. A few months later I decided that the brown was not flattering and I went back to my natural hair color, but kept the brown eyebrows...awkward! 

I tried many different options - some powder fillers, eyeliners, more dying - but none of the options filled them out, colored the existing brows and color matched. Finally, I found this, a miracle in a tube! It fills in the sparseness, matches my natural hair color, and put color on the actual hairs instead of being a layer under the glowing white hairs in light. The best part is, I can put it on in a general swipe and refine the shape with a damp Q-tip to get perfect arches. This also helps as a guide to pluck away all the unnecessary "invisible" hairs that catch the sunlight.

Colors!: 2013 - Emerald

Apparently, Pantone has been checking my searches because they totally stole my current color interest when they chose Emerald as their color of the year (literally, I even used "emerald" they didn't even try to hide it!). So get ready to see green everywhere you go, thankfully it's a pretty universally flattering color to all skin, hair, and eye colors. As a result of my already piqued interest, I have a bunch of cute ways to incorporate this hot hue into your look.

1. Green Colored Pencil

2. Emerald Shadow in an Emerald Case - Seriously Emerald
3. Maybe Dorothy Should Have Worn These to Meet the Wizard
4. Two Trends for the Price of One! Emerald AND Lace
5. Aaaaaand it's on Sale!
6. British Racing Green
7. Emerald as Emeralds
8. Year Round Emerald
9. A Lot for a Little

Be Bold AND Beautiful

So you have all seen them, especially if you happen upon a JCrew catalog, but I am willing to bet many of you don't utilize their beauty power! Your Mom knew their power, your Grandma probably even more so, what you ask is this super beauty powerhouse??? BOLD lips! Nothing can spruce up your face or your outfit like a bright beautiful lip. Whether you go for classic red or current hotties, hot pink and red-orange you will instantly appear to be a chic stylish lady with minimal effort. A little trip to Sephora or your favorite make-up test zone with your BFF is a great way to find the best color for you. There are also a lot of make-up specific bloggers out there that will recommend a number of super fancy ( NARS-$$$) lipsticks, which I am sure are incredible, but if you don't have tons of money to spend on a test drive your local Target store has more than enough offerings to get you going. However, it is very important that with you purchase of lipstick you also purchase a lip liner, this is essential to a long lasting non-feathering successful bold lip. You can go one of two routes, either purchase a lip liner that closely matches your lipstick color, or purchase a clear lip liner that will keep your edges clean with multiple shades.

   Hot Pink                          Classic Red                        Orange-y Red

Steps to get long lasting bold lip color:

1. Carefully line lips on the very edge with a nice clean smooth outline.
2. Fill lips with liner - if using a same color liner
3. Apply a coat of lipstick
4. Blot lips
5. Dust a layer of your face powder over your lips
6. Apply a second coat of lipstick
7. Blot

Voila! Be prepared for a few head turns...

Holiday parties are a great time to bust these out for a great WOW factor, but don't hesitate to mix it into your everyday make-up and give those smokey eyes a break or give your  glasses a geek chic upgrade!

Fox Yeah!

So my forever favorite seems to be the darling of the fashion community this winter with foxes popping up all over the place. Taylor Swift was just spotted at the zoo rocking a fox sweater and Tory Burch has a whole line of products dedicated to the fabulous red fox. In case you want to get in on the action I have assembled a large collection of fox finds, most are pretty easily attainable, while a few are definitely for hard core fox lovers like myself. (Number 2 & 9 are my top picks.)

1. Sweater 1
2. Sweater 2
3. Sweater 3
4. Sweater 4
5. Top 5
6. Top 6
7. Top 7
8. Top 8
9. Super Crazy Awesome Flats 9
10. Scarf 10
11. Dress 11