Summer Looks: Cotton Candy Queen

cotton candy by aurevoircat featuring denim shorts

Put together a little summer inspiration for you all. I haven't posted in a little while so here ya go!!!!!!

This look will hopefully encourage you to play with funky colors, patterns and textures no matter who you are or what you're dressing for!

The shorts and button up will give you coolness in this summer heat, while the jacket is cute and cozy enough to keep you warm from the breeze.

ALSO: My newest obsession are WATCHES. I recently bought a $1 watch from the flea market (it doesn't work!!! lol) but it's my favorite accessory to pair along with rings. It adds a really sophisticated look. Bonus points for wearing it mid wrist with the dial facing you like its the 80's.

Last but not least check out these freaking sunglasses. They're like, screeeaming 60's flowerchild to me right now.

Hope it inspires your inner girly girl to come out and play.



-C

Funky Space Nails

Hi everyone, so I haven't made a post in a little while, and today I got my nails done avec le mama. My mom suggested something "bright" and I considered a change from my usual deep reds and burgundies. I took forever trying to decide, as my indecisiveness always gets the best of me! The woman who was going to work on my nails was getting a little bothered, and then I finally brought her this chartreuse color by Essie, and a black with sparkles polish by Orly.



The left color is called "Goth" by Orly and the right color is "The More The Merrier" by Essie. Goth was a way for me to keep my love for dark colors, but still have a bit of change too!!

Below, is the finished product! Okay, so it might be a low-quality webcam photo, but you can still feel the space funk grooviness vibes that these nails are giving you. I chose to have my index finger polished with Goth, and I love it because the black mixed with the sparkles makes it look like I have a galaxy living on my finger! I love greens generally, and this bright green pops to channel that beginning-of-summer energy.



I  hope you all enjoyed seeing what my nails look like this week! I love to change it up sometimes, so recommend me your favorite colors and nail polish brands! To be honest with you, these are my two favorite brands and I recommend them highly. Essie always guarantees a beautiful color that lasts long and goes on smooth, and the same goes for Orly. Orly has unique colors that last long!

If you try something similar, let me know. There are more nail posts to come! I'm one of those people who changes their nails every week.



-C

Film: Top 3 Foreign Favorites

So many films, not enough time. One of my favorite things to do is watch movies when there's nothing else to do! I've fallen in love with French cinema and I absolutely love French actors Lea Seydoux, Marion Cotillard, and Guillame Canet. I think foreign films in particular are distinctly unique because the techniques and styles of their cinematography as well as their culture plays a huge part in making the films diverse. It's so interesting to identify the differences between American movies and movies from different countries.

Some films that I absolutely adore and who hail from ecentric parts of the world include:

• "Dolls" directed by Takeshi Kitano

Dolls is a Japanese Romantic Drama which follows the tales of three different stories of undying love. It may be a little confusing at first, but the film just might become your favorite of love and loss. This movie is pure art!

The first story of love involves two lovers connected by a red rope (pictured above). The second is a tale of an elder Yakuza who visits the park where he used to meet his girlfriend as a teenager, and third story is of a pop star's injury and her biggest fan.

The costumes worn by the actors were made by Japanese designer Yohji Yamamoto, who is one of my favorites. His work is so extremely genius, and adds to the film's beauty and eccentricity. The film is in Japanese, so if you're not fluent you'll need the subtitles, but trust me it's definitely worth the watch. Or 50.

• "Jeux D'enfants" (Love Me If You Dare) directed by Yann Samuell

 

Jeux D'enfants is a French comedy/drama/romance about Sophie and Julien. They began their game of dares with a little tin box when they were children, and it lasted them up until their adult life. The love that Sophie has for Julien and that Julien has for Sophie isn't really confronted until the end, when their love stands the ultimate test of time!

(I cry EVERYTIME.)

• La Belle Personne (The Beautiful Person) directed by Christophe Honoré 

The French have a thing for stunningly heartbreaking love stories. La Belle Personne is a French Comedic Drama/Romance. (Do you see a pattern here?) I have a thing for tragic love stories with hints of comedy...heh heh. But this features two of my favorites, Lea Seydoux and Louis Garrel!! Lea plays sixteen year old Junie whose mother recently died, forcing her to move in with her cousin in another city. To sum it up, she and her school professor named Nemours (played by Louis Garrel) fall in love, but Junie's character is hesitant, and the consequences aren't pretty. You won't be able to take your eyes off of Lea in this film and her stunning character!

Okay! So now you ladies and gents know my top 3 foreign films (as of right now) Don't be afraid to recommend me your favs and if you watch any of these let me know what ya think!

x

-C

Lovely Letters - A Snail Mail Exchange

Perhaps it's that I needed to remind myself to slow down, or that I love receiving actual letters in the mail that I can touch and read, or perhaps it's that I love surprises and meeting new people. Well in fact, it's all of that. I love meeting new people, especially when they are in another country, I love corresponding via snail mail, I love purchasing stamps, and I love the idea of these lovely letters.

I joined the Lovely Letters snail mail exchange after suggestion by my amazing friend Esther, who one- is an amazing photographer and foodie, and two- inspired my daughter and I to start our mother/daughter blog. But more importantly, she and I have been exchanging snail mail since she moved from LA to Vegas a few months ago. It's such a refreshing gesture that shows you're being thought of when friends reach out and say howdy, even when they have a gazillion other things happening in their own lives.

Esther definitely does that, she's great at making you feel special and remembered. I thought I'd pay it forward and chime in on this pen pal thing and I'm loving it so far! I've only has the chance to correspond via email with my pal, who lives in the UK and her name is Adrienne. However, it's so awesome to get to know someone new, someone with a completely different life, in a completely different environment, in a completely different country! And I really can't wait until she receives my first snail mail from us. Corrine and I made a lil something for her inspired by this month's theme: Spring :D

She's a few years older than my daughter, in college, and I think it's funny that we all live in this great big world with our very own lives to worry about, but that we're all under the same blue sky. Think about it. Crazy right! So interesting to me that I now get to know someone I would under any other circumstances, not have gotten the chance to know.

So if you love meeting new people, reading new blogs, writing, and snail mail, join us in the Lovely Letters snail mail exchange for next month here . It's open until June 27th, so sign up, grab a button here,  and meet your new pen pal! It's like a 'Paris Hilton's new bff', except less drama, more bff's, and no air time ;)....well except for the snail mail part.



You can read more about Lovely Letters here from Esther and here from Lauren. I'm co hosting this month's link up with these two lovely ladies. So grateful for friends like Esther, and new friends like Adrienne and Lauren!

Happy reading and writing to you all, hope to read about all of your exchanges and pen pal lovin' next time!

Hugs,

Jess

3 Formal/Casual Looks For Summer

It's May and the heat is already starting to get to us! I threw together a few outfits that I feel can be worn throughout summer and all of it's various occasions. From formal to casual,the pieces can be mixed and matched to create tons of different looks.





Look #1: I put this together with those of you who like simple, but also classic pieces in mind. It's a refreshing pallete of black and white that are perfect for summer nights. This look could be worn anywhere from dinner to a night out.

Top: here

Jeans: here

Shoes: here

Necklace: here

Bag: here



Look #2: Casual yet trendy, the gold statement necklace matched with red lips will stand out against the black jeans and sandals. Sport this look to school or work. The strappy sandals can be paired with virtually anything, and are a better alternative to ballet flats if you want to change it up! Gold jewelry is always a great accent to any outfit.

Top: here

Pants: here

Shoes: here

Necklace: here

Lipstick: here

Bag: here



Look #3: You remember jelly's, I know you doooo. You wore them as a kid and ran around in them on hot nights with your friends. Incorporate them this summer with your favorite pair of shorts for a nostalgic presence in your look. 

Top: here

Shorts: here

Jelly's: here (the pair shown above are child sized, find adult sizes here and here)

Shades: here

Makeup Palette: here

Clear Clutch: here



- C

Noise: 15 Must See Artists at FYF 2014 (links included)

Lately there has been quite a bit of fuss on social networking sites about a music festival called FYF Fest, (short for Fuck Yeah Festival) which takes place in Los Angeles for just two days out of every year! With VIP Passes starting at $229 and Weekend Passes at $129, not all of the music lovers and festival go-ers of Los Angeles can attend on such small budgets (hello, I'm talking about myself!)

I put together a little playlist of some of my most favorite and beloved artists who will be gracing the stages of FYF.

Altogether you'll hear one song each by 15 different artists all performing at FYF this summer. Scroll down for the playlist and click on the links to give the songs a listen.



 

Be warned, not all songs are of the same genre. A lot of them are extremely different from eachother.

Genesis by Grimes

Take It Easy by Surfer Blood

40 Days by Slowdive

Galaxy In Janaki by Flying Lotus

Can We Go Inside Now by Blood Orange

Paper Trails by Darkside

Balance by Future Islands

Get Got by Death Grips

It's Real by Real Estate

Chamber of Reflection by Mac Demarco

Inside Your Heart by Ty Segall

Hi-Five by Angel Olsen

Breeze by XXYYXX

Constant Headache by Joyce Manor

I'm The Man, That Will Find You by Connan Mockasin

Hope you enjoy it, let me know who your favorites were!

au revoir, - C

My Beach Bag Essentials

Summer is upon us here in Los Angeles, and it's usually warm and sunny but it's been especially warm so we've been going to the beach or seeking out pools to dip into a lot lately. There are a few things I take with me each time, my beach bag essentials! You can pack this bag for the beach, to go pool side, or even for any time you hike or spend an extended period of time outside. These are just some of my must have items for my skin and lips to keep my protected, hydrated, and refreshed.

[caption id="attachment_421" align="aligncenter" width="751"] My beach bag essentials[/caption]

1. A beach umbrella: Any time I know i'm going to be in the sun for an extended period of time, I bring my umbrella. It's cute, it shades me, and it keeps me cool. I love the Asian pattern on this one, and I feel so kimono when I have it. haha

2. Harmless Harvest Coconut Water: If you know me than you know I love love love coconut water. Most coconut waters taste like butt though, not gonna lie, but this coconut water is LITERALLY like putting a straw in a coconut. If I don't like something you'll know, and this I LOVE. If you don't usually like coconut water, give this a try, I promise it'll change your mind about coconut water tasting like butt ;)

3. Caudalie Beauty Elixir: The beach air, the sun, the water, it can all be uber drying to your skin and this spray is amazing. It's refreshing with it's citrus derivatives, it's calming and moisturizing, and smells AMAZE! A definite must try even if you don't have dry skin and just want to try something refreshing for a mid day pick me up.

4. The Body Shop Body Butter in Coconut: This body butter is perfect for summer time parched skin. It smells divine (yes coconut everything), it's travel size so it's great for your to go bag, your tote, and your beach bag. It's nice and thick but absorbs quickly, a little goes a long way, and it's rich without being oily.

5. Shiseido Urban Environment: This is my all time favorite SPF for your face. It's thin and light, quickly absorbed with no greasy feeling after you've applied it, great under makeup, and the SPF is high enough that it makes my heart happy :)

6. Rosebud Lip Balm Minted Rose: My most favorite lip balm, smells great, super hydrating, glossy, with no need to pack a lip liner or lipstick....WIN!

7. Harajuku Lovers G perfume: I've talked about this perfume a bunch of times, but this is my go to perfume, I keep a travel size in my clutch at all times. It's a light tropical coconut sweet but not too sweet of a scent. Weird description I know. But I love smelling good, and this one definitely does it for me. Sexy and lady like.

8. Canon Vixia Mini: This is my vlogging camera, compact, wide lens, easy to tote, and the perfect hand held camera. I love this vlog camera and literally don't leave home without it. All of my daily vlogs are shot on it.

9. Sunnies: The classic black sunnies, good for any and ALL occasions and protects your eyes. No squinting, no wrinkles ;)

10. Barbara's Snackimals: I love these lil suckers! Like a healthy animal cracker. I use the word healthy loosely btw. I like to incorporate the word into my vocabulary as much as possible, makes me feel like I'm ACTUALLY being healthier.

11. Scooby Doo Mystery Machine Lunch Pale: I initially purchased this for my daughter a year ago and she didn't use it so I'm making the most of it! I pack all of our picnic stuff, beach snacks, and pool side yummies in this sack and it's awesome. Nostalgic AND keeps my things nice and cool, love this!

 

So what do you pack when you go to the beach or pool side? I think my next post will be on our hiking essentials since we've done a few big hikes these past few months. But with this warm weather I wanted to give you what I have with me right now. Literally....I'm posting this pool side in Palm Springs. My skin is burning off in this 110 degree weather but I can't complain. We needed a mini vacay from LA, and I pool time is always a good time!

 

A very happy and safe Memorial day to all of you, remembering our fallen soldiers today and grateful for our men and women in the armed forces currently. Proud Army brat!

 

- J