I recently tried Aldo's new personality geared fragrances. Take a mini-quiz at A is for ALDO to find out what corresponding scent is best for you & your personality. The fragrances are coded by color...the women's fragrances are as follows:

 A is for ALDO Red is perfect for passionate and sensual women. Top notes offer aromas of frozen peach and bergamot; the heart adds jasmine, rose and honeysuckle, while the base closes with sandalwood, amber and musk.

A is for ALDO Blue is ideal for sexy, glamorous and seductive women, alluring us with bergamot, freesia, lemon and verbena. The heart encompasses heliotrope, jasmine and magnolia, while the base includes coconut, black amber, Tonka, musk and plum.

 A is for ALDO Yellow is for those of us that are chic and playful. It opens with luminous and citrusy notes of mandarin, grapefruit and neroli, as an overture to a floral heart full of orange blossom, honey suckle and jasmine. The base includes amber, sandalwood and musk.

I chose A is for ALDO Yellow, and have been carrying around the small roll-on fragrance with me in my bag. It is a fun citrus scent, perfect for everyday. It makes me think of spring and warm weather, so it puts me in a good mood!

I am a child of the eighties so hyper-color shirts, neon snap bracelets, and lime glow-in-the dark hoop earrings were once some of my coveted fashion possessions. I wish I could say I walked around giving looks of disdain a la Suri to my peers for their questionable taste, but instead I embraced them. I'm not proud of it, and for some reason I just can't shake my love of these blinding neon hues (Thankfully, I don't have the same nostalgic feelings for big hair or perms!).  The neon trend has taken over, and I especially love when the bright hues are paired with neutrals. Greys, camel, and beige look phenomenal with lime, hot pink, and yellow. Some of my favorite neon pieces can be found below:

For work, or for the faint of heart you might prefer to stick to small pops of color in the form of accessories as demonstrated below:

My favorite nail look at the moment is a simple twist on a classic nude polish. I use O.P.I.'s apinky beige shade of polish under a gold glittering top coat. You can easily achieve this look by pairing your choice of a beige or barely there pink shade of polish and a gold glitter top coat. If you don't have a glitter top coat on hand simply mix craft glitter with a bit of clear polish!

I used Mimosas For Mr. & Mrs. as my base coat, and used Only Gold For Me as my top coat.

This was my final look:

I find that glitter top coats are a great way to hide smudges and chips through out the week, so I seem to always have one on hand. Ah, the many benefits of loving glitter!

Lately I've noticed my iPhone sliding around in its case. Naturally, that gave me an excuse to shop for a new case that was both functional and fashionable. I now have a bit of a dilemma because I discovered all of the amazing, gallery worthy, iPhone cases available for sale at Society 6. I am particularly smitten with these abstract cases designed by Amy Sia:

Aren't they gorgeous? If you're not an iPhone user, don't fear, Society 6 has designs just as lovely as these available as prints, tech covers/skins, and tees.

 

Shop the selection at Society 6.

A few weeks ago I was contacted by Misikko to review a HANA Salon product. I typically do not use flat irons, so I opted to review the Hair Dryer, a styling tool that is essential to my hair's existence ever since I cut bangs in my hair. If I don't blow out my hair, it dries flat and my bangs look stringy and annoying cowlicks reign supreme. It isn't a good look to say the least. I have tried countless dryers ranging from drugstore faves, the professional consumer variety, and the whatever is lying around variety.

My first impression was positive, the dryer was packaged in a nice box with a single concentrator attachment. The concentrator attachment is perfect for me because I typically dry my hair with a round brush and like to concentrate the air on those sections giving me a smooth, sleek look. Gals with curly or wavy hair would probably prefer to have a diffuser in there as well, but the single attachment was great for me. The dryer has two fan speeds, three heat settings and a cold shot button. The dryer was easy to handle. It wasn't too heavy, and the concentrator attachment stayed firmly on while drying. I was constantly knocking off the concentrator attachment off my old dryer, so this was an immediate improvement.

I was impressed by how powerful the dryer was, the air was not joking around. I wasn't impressed by how hot the dryer got, I mean it is hot, but even the dryers at my gym are probably hotter.  Because of my hairs lack of thickness & the fact it is naturally straight the dryer's sheer power was able to dry my hair with great speed despite the fact the dryer didn't come close to getting as hot as my other dryers. I have a friend who has went through tons of professional hair dryers and will judge them simply based on how hot they get. She has a ton of thick, curly hair, so for her, heat is really essential especially if she is blowing her hair out straight. I doubt this dryer would meet her requirements for those reasons.

This is an excellent dryer for someone like me who wants to blow out their hair as fast as possible with a sleek, non-frizzy look with a little bit of volume at the roots. It would even be good for someone with medium-thick hair or anyone with slight waves. If you're looking for hellish heat this isn't for you, but otherwise it is an excellent choice if you are willing to make a decent investment in a hair styling tool. The dryer is available for $195 (but typically retails for $335).

 

On most days I prefer a neutral makeup look, and on special occasions I will elevate my everyday look by adding some individual false lashes, create a smokey eye, or I will opt for a bright lip color. I thought it would be fun to show you the makeup products that I flock to on a daily basis. These are my ultimate favorite beauty products I simply wouldn't want to live without:

When I saw these fantastic cross-stitch d.i.y. projects I knew I had to put my stockpile of DMC embroidery floss to work on something other than a friendship bracelet!

The folks over at Fossil have transformed their perforated leather "Mason" handbag into a cross-stitch grid. I love the idea of customizing a bag to make it one-of-a-kind! Of course, this is an ambitious project and will take some planning, but I think the pay-off will be well worth it. Grab some graph paper & sketch out your design. Fossil has smaller  perforated leather "Mason" accessories that might work as well.

Put a heavy object like a water bottle inside the bag to help prepare your surface. Keep in mind that X's need to be crossed in the same direction. Thread your needle & tie a knot. Start on the inside of the bag poking through the lining of the bag & through the leather grid.  To create a stitch insert needle into the hole 45 degrees diagonally from the first hole and slide your needle under the perforated leather layer only (you don't have to go back through the bag lining) to the next hole. Once you finish a line of x's run your needle through the back & secure by once again poking through the lining and tie a knot. Continue in this manner until you've completed your design. For full instructions on this project, visit the Fossil blog.

You can also get your craft on with these genius cross-stitch iphone covers.  The cover comes with a 33 by 69 grid cross stitch case, three colors of thread, a needle, and a booklet of designs. But you can get creative and design your own pattern!

For Spring 2012, Reiss gives a nod to the minimalism of the '90s with clean lines and structured tailoring. These pieces are offset by playful pops of color & pattern inspired by the "poolside glamour" of the '40s. There of course are plenty of delicate lace & sheer fabrics throughout that add femininity to the spring line.

The Reiss SS12 Campaign video has me longing for sunny California...

I must admit, I frequent Reiss's West Broadway location in Soho far too often, but I never fail to leave without great fitting, timeless pieces, and for these reasons they have me coming back for more punishment to my bank account.  My Reiss shopping wishlist is always in play, my favorites of the moment are below:

Visit Reiss's style notebook to see more of the Reiss Spring/Summer collection

I love the simple graphic details on these leather pouches from Falcon Wright:

Being the ultimate girly-girl, I look for excuses to wear pink. Naturally, I love Valentine's Day for the endless supply of pink and use the holiday as an excuse to shop for myself. It is a great time of year to stock up on beauty items and lingerie because there are usually deals & gift sets to be had. This spring bright hues are all the rage, so grabbing bright pink accessories might just be in order as well. Check out my favorite Valentine's Day picks below:

Vahram Muratyan's delightful travel journal, Paris versus New York, is now a book! I adore the simple yet striking graphic take on the two cities as they never fail to put a smile on my face. Below are a few of my favorite illustrated entries all of which can be purchased as art prints at Colette:

Paris versus New York: A Tally of Two Cities is available for purchase @Amazon

I am hopelessly nearsighted and though I favor contacts, I do like to have a pair of frames to throw on just before bed or on days when my eyes need a break. My current pair of specs are 9 year old Gucci frames that have a far too weak prescription in them. Because I don't wear glasses full time I don't want to spend a small fortune on them, however I still want them to look smart and stylish. Enter Warby Parker, a brand I heard about via a work colleague. Warby Parker offers a ton of stylish and affordable frames to choose from.  You pay just $95 for frames (the price includes lenses). Better yet, for every pair purchased, the company gives a pair to someone in need. The company has showrooms in Manhattan that you can visit with an appointment to try on frames, but I opted for the Home Try On Session where you simply log on to their website, choose five frames, and Warby Parker ships them off to you completely free of charge with no obligation to purchase. I chose the following styles: Huxley, Beckett, Japhy, Preston, & Owen for my try-on session. Once they arrive, you have five days to test out the frames for fit, comfort, and the opinions of your friends and family. After much discussion, of the five frames, the Preston frame was my favorite. Here I am wearing the Preston: