Circus Theme B-day Party-Part 1!

My niece's birthday is coming up and of course the event planner in me couldn't wait to make a huge party about it. We browsed thru "Hostess with the Mostess",my favorite events website, for some inspiration and to choose the theme. My sister in law didn't want anything too girly so she ended up deciding on a circus theme.

I suggested something really modern and cool so I had my cousin, who is a graphic designer and an architect, design the invitation so we could plan our decorations around it. She came up with the cutest invitation.

By: Frances Ortiz

Closing cycles!

Life is about changes and a lot of people, things and situations happen in our life that can either bring a lot of joy or a lot of sadness. What's important is to keep the positive, let go of the negative and accept that in order for something to be constant in life there has to be a mutual compromise and desire to stay in that stage, that friendship or that relationship. 

TOP 10 SPRING SUMMER TRENDS!!!

Spring is already here and stores are stocking up on the new fashion trends for the season. I must say this has to be one of my favorite trends in a long time! A lot of bright colors and boho chic/rocker style trends are mixing up to create the most amazing pieces I've seen in a while. So here are the top trends for the season:

1. Bold Colors and Neons: Tangerine is leading the season with green, yellow and red close behind.  Look out for neon yellow, pink, orange, purple, blue or green. Aren't you loving the Marc Jacobs neon satchels. Bags, shoes and jewelry are the biggest neon trend in town.

Fun Outfits on a Budget!!

Here are some outfits I've put together from all the stuff I got on SALE!! The good thing is you can Mix & Match a lot of them and make totally different looks. Anyways...Hope you like them!! ENJOY!

Zara Orange Trousers with gold botton, White Racerback Tank top, Leather 

Pumps and Studded Leather Bracelet / Bershka Brown Leather Bag/ 

Day a Day Necklace and Primark Golden Bangles

Total Outfit: 48 Euros (Aprox. $63)

Sanxenxo: A hidden gem in Galicia, Spain!

First of I ABSOLUTELY LOVE TRAVELING so I'm always looking for new places to discover. So when it came to the hubby's birthday I knew what I wanted to do. It was an extra benefit that he made it clear he wanted it to be just him and me and that he didn't want any surprises. Well I did make sure it was the two of us but I love surprises so I couldn't help myself. It got me into a little trouble when I said I had to drive and he had to have his eyes closed or be blindfolded. He threw a fit and I almost felt I had a child for 10 minutes but then he got into it and even let me walk him to the room with his eyes closed. I had to bump him into a few walls on the way just to get back at him for being so difficult at the beginning though. LOL

Bilbao, San Sebastian and Haro: Our 3 day getaway to the Basque Country and La Rioja!

This was the structure right
in the middle of our hotel.
You can sign the rocks!!

For my birthday this year one of my best friends came to visit from Houston, Texas. Since she was going to be here for a whole week I thought we could make a little visit to somewhere neither of us had ever been. We wanted to make it to Morroco but we couldn't find any tickets to fit our schedule so we decided to go to the Basque Country for 3 days. We tried to fit as much as we could in those days and I think we did pretty good.

Me Madrid: My new favorite hotel in Madrid!

Hotel Me Madrid

For my B-Day back in February 16th we headed to Madrid for a weekend getaway where we got to meet and celebrate with our best friends and my sister. Since it was my b-day I wanted to stay in a very cool hotel. I was looking for a boutique hotel with a rooftop terrace preferably, rooms with a view and in the middle of everything. After browsing for the best deals and reading lots of reviews I decided for the ME Madrid. From now on it's the place where I want to stay every time I go to Madrid.

Rebaixas Rebaixas!!! Shopped till I dropped!!

One of the things that make me happy is a very good buy so when the sales started on January 7th I was ready to shop till I dropped. It took a while for this post but the "rebaixas", as they call them here in Santiago, were not over so I had more shopping to do before I posted. I am finally done shopping and I'm happy to say I made some amazing buys. The things I got are from seasons from one to two years ago but I'm not a super strict trend follower so it was great for me. I like to stick to my own style and incorporate some new trends if I like them so most of the things I bought were timeless pieces and some pretty cool shoes. I was extremely happy with all the bright color pieces on sale. Oh and I was very happy with all the quality stuff  I got from the good brands like Massimo Dutti and Zara where I got  most of my stuff.

Well 2 coats, 2 cardigans, 3 scarves, 20 tops, 6 bottoms, 5 dresses, 15 pairs of genuine leather shoes and a few more things later here I go.These are some of the things I got. Wonder how much extra luggage I'll have to take back home!! Prices are in euros but leather heels for 15 Euros ($20 USD)!! Come on!!! Had to!!! I can't even describe the feeling you get when you see those 90 Euro Shoes at 15!! :)!!! And I'm saving all my receipts to claim my IVA (spanish tax) when I go back home. Ahhhhh...definitely enjoyed spending the check I got from some work I did last summer ;). Now back to saving mode and fashion ready for the summer.

So hard to do but so worth it...

Most likely you'll surround yourself with GOOD people and GOOD 
people know when they've messed up even when they won't accept 
it so don't sweat it. I know it's hard but if you really know their 
heart you know how they really feel. Always try to be the 
bigger person in a humble manner. You know what I mean. ;)

And the Oscar for Best Dressed goes to.....

GWYNETH GWYNETH GWYNETH!!

There weren't many dresses that I drooled over in the Oscars. There were a lot of cute pretty dresses but not anything spectacularly different that I would say "oooooh I want it". That's with the exception of Gwyneth's simple but unique Tom Ford gown. She looked almost perfect although I would've worn some small earrings, a sleeker hairstyle and maybe a darker tone of lipstick so she didn't look so pale but I think she tried to make it all about the dress and she achieved. Besides Gwyneth, my other favorite was Giuliana Rancic's beaded Tony Ward dress. I loved the "Old Hollywood" feel it had. These two were my absolute favorites although there were a few other dresses that I liked.

Did Paris Hilton just do this?! Oh Basil Soda!

I didn't think Paris Hilton would be the one to make me like a designer. (It's a matter of style. I'm not so pink I guess.) I am sure she owns amazing pieces of clothing and gorgeous dresses but I'm not a big fan of most of her fashion choices so I was very pleasantly surprised when I saw her at the Grammys. (By the way I know the Grammy's are old news now but I had to write this post.) Out of all the dresses that were worn that night Paris's was my favorite so I had to google "Basil Soda" and see the collection. I have to say his 2012 Summer Collection is pretty awesome. No wonder he worked with Elie Saab before creating his own line. Fabrics are very rich and creatively sewn into every piece. Well judge for yourself and well done Paris! 

Bimba & Lola

Coming from a small island and loving fashion, one of my favorite things to do when I'm abroad is to shop in stores we don't have back home. I usually go for what they call hear in Spain "tiendas de autor" which are basically designer owned boutiques that have unique pieces. However there are a few spanish chain stores that I do really love. One of them is Bimba & Lola. Named after the dogs of the owners, this store has some interesting original pieces at affordable prizes. They have clothing, bags, shoes, accessories and jewelry. Well anyways here's a look at what I got for my birthday which I ABSOLUTELY LOVED!! 

This piece makes any simple outfit ROCK! I paired it with a plain
white tank top, jeans, pumps! ;) 

Love the hints of sparkle mixed with the "shoe lace" design.
Makes it look funky chic.

You can wear this with some plain bangles to add a hint
 of color to your outfit. 

 

This one I got with one of my BF as a Friendship Bracelet.
It's so much fun. Just looking at it makes me smile. Plus
LOVE LOVE LOVE the bright colors.

Some of my favorite Marchesa's!

“We're women designing for women. We know how they feel in a beautiful dress.
That'sour focus right now.”—Georgina Chapman The Houston Chronicle

Marchesa, created by close friends Georgina Chapman (left) and Keren Craig, is an elegant evening wear company named after Italian heiress and style icon Marchesa Luisa Casati.  This brand dares to be different and I love that they use rich fabrics as well as a lot of appliques and embroidery. It is sophisticated, elegant, trendy and sexy. These two british designers, who look more like models than designers, definitely know how to make a woman feel beautiful and unique. Here are some of my favorite styles thru the years and I think Blake will agree ;).

DIY Valentine's Day Gift Ideas!!

Yes I know it's commercial and a reason to spend more money than you would but I like the idea of a day that celebrates love and friendship. And yes I know that day should be celebrated every day!! Anyways, for me Valentines is that one day I would rather have my hubby paint me a horrible mural on the wall with a huge messed up heart shape and the words "I LOVE YOU" that look like a 2 year old wrote them than have him get me a store bought gift. I mean, I won't reject a really cute bracelet but you get my point.So I've pinned some cute DIY ideas that I'm considering and wanted to share them with you. :). I'll give you an update on what I finally did.

Healthy recipe substitutions!!

I'm always on the hunt to make my foods delicious and healthier. Here is a list of healthy substitutions when baking or cooking I found on a really cool website called "The Greatist". This is the link to the original article which has some other links and information. I'm going to try some of these in a flour-less no added sugar carrot cupcakes I'm about to make and I'll let you know. ;)

My Workout Tips!!

I could only wish that I was one of those people who can sit on their behinds all day, eat everything they want, not workout at all and not gain an ounce. However, reality bites and I'm not like that and apparently neither is Gwyneth! I need to workout or do some kind of exercise every day. Lucky for me that I can't bare the idea of sitting and doing nothing the whole day. I need to be active!! But when it comes to workout it's a whole different story. I don't get excited at all about working out even though I feel horrible when I don't. So, if you are like me, here's what I do to keep myself motivated about working out.

One day till Jason Wu for Target!!

Target has teamed up with Jason Wu, the young designer who did the famous beautiful white gown Michelle Obama used for the Presidential Inaugural Ball, to launch its latest limited-edition designer collection. 

The collection is made up of 53 super cute pieces including dresses, skirts, tops, shorts, bags and scarves. The prices will range from $19.99 to $59.99. The collection was inspired from the idea of an American girl in Paris. (I think he achieved!) Here are some of the pieces of the collection. Make sure to browse the collection at Target early on Sunday and be one of the first ones to get some of these cute pieces.

Balmain Rocks!

I'm I the only one loving Balmain?!! These styles absolutely rock! Well at least to me! I would mix n match some of them with simpler pieces but I thought these were so cool. These were my favorites from the collection.

Breathtaking Elie Saab!

OMG Elie Saab's Couture 2012 collection is simply AMAZING!! This collection is so feminine and all about delicate fabrics. These fabrics took me back to when I was looking for fabrics for my wedding dress. Exactly what I was looking for at that time and pretty close to what I had made. ;)! 


Usually I'm not a pastel color lover but I loved every single piece of his collection. Even when there's a lot of styles that wouldn't be my first choices when picking a dress, the fabrics were so rich and beautiful I don't think there was one piece in this collection that I would say I wouldn't wear. A lot of sheer embroidered fabrics, floral embellishments and white and pastel colors. This collection also reminded me of when I saw the collections from Valentino when he was still designing for his brand. Elie definitely had me drooling over all these amazing fabrics and designs. 

Ohhhh DVF!!

Just finished browsing Dian Von Fustenberg's site and I must say I need to win the lottery SOON!! I've always thought she is so feminine and trendy in a very wearable way. And I love all those bright colors and cute prints! And her website is so cute!!! I'll post here my favorites and just hope to win the "Euromillones" so I can go buy the whole store. ;) If I could at least get 3,4,6,7,11,12,14 and 15!! ;)