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!! ;)

 

 

         

 

Keep on pushing!!

Kei's Jewelry

Keyla Torres is another Puerto Rican designer that I absolutely love. She makes really cool handcrafted fine jewelry. Guess what?!! Her shop's one year anniversary is coming up and she is having a SALE!! Yes girls I said SALE!! So go to her etsy or facebook page and look at her collection. I've got the sterling silver sideways cross and can't wait to go back home and get some of her new stuff. Well girls... ENJOY!!!

Please repeat!!

Have you ever met anyone like this? So my hubby is a basketball player and he is the point guard for the team so you know, he is always thinking about the next great strategy for the next game. That's why every Sunday I go thru this. And when I'm back at Puerto Rico, where we play two times a week, I go thru this twice as much. 

So after EVERY SINGLE game I hear about plays, rebounds, turnovers, missed shots OVER and OVER again. When he's done telling his story on our way to the restaurant (after the game) it's time to discuss it with the teammates we meet for lunch. And when we are done there, he gets back home calls his dad, discusses it once again, calls his brother and does it all over again and, of course, every one of his friends calls him after a game and I have to hear the story all over again. And when I think I'm done with it, it's practice time where the team will discuss the game once again, so guess what he wants to talk about when he comes back home. But you know what I WOULD NOT HAVE IT ANY OTHER WAY. Because it has taught me how much passion he has for what he does. So if you are passionate about something disregard the people who get tired of your stories and stick to the people who love and embrace everything that you do and who you are.

Funny!

I read this and thought it was hilarious because either you've done one of the above before or you've been thru this with someone. So annoying though but pretty funny when you read it! LOL! Btw sorry for the curse words. I know it's not classy and I don't support it but think about it, that's what some people always do. Hope you have a wonderful "jueves social" (that's how we describe Thursdays back home ;))

Headband Obsessed!

Here I'm featuring a Puerto Rican accessory designer who has some amazing headbands that I'm obsessed with. I wish it wasn't such a fashion statement wearing them so I could use them every time. I guess I can't be wearing all this bling every day..Sure I can!!! She has some amazing designs so I thought I'd give you her link so you can enjoy them too. They are very well made and the fabrics are very delicate. Hope you like Carolina's designs as much as I do.

Wearing my "Ramona" Carolina Rodriguez headband