For me, winter brings an unexplained phenomena... skin hands and feet become ultra-dry while my scalp gets oilier. Time for a change of shampoo!

Ever since I dyed my hair mid-summer I've been using Kerastase's Chroma Reflection line for colored hair. Okay, I'll admit it. I colored my hair just so I could use this shampoo- it smells incredible. But now with the change of leather I am getting oily roots much too quickly between washes. Switch.

The bain divalent is specially formulated for oily scalps and dry sensitized lengths. In other words, long dry hair with oily roots like me. Then as a conditioner I use the Ciment Anti-Usure (which is for dry, damaged lengths) only at the ends of my hair.

Works like a charm.

Typically I have very heavy, very straight hair. Without care, my hair falls limp & flat against my head. I've tried numerous ways to combat the "Demi Moore" hairstyle and I've finally got a tried-and-true method. Forget the Frederic Fekkai Glossing Cream, forget the Kerastase Leave-In's... my hair is heavy enough and all that extra weight just makes my hair straighter (albeit shiner).

Now I just spritz some Frederic Fekkai volume spray lightly into my roots, turn my head upside down and blow dry. I know- we've all read this a million times right? Well the trick is after your hair goes from damp to stiffly dry, get your head right-side-up again, use a round boar brush to brush out the hair starting from the sides (ears) from underneath and blowdry again from underneath... much easier than trying to master salon-style blowdrying from above.

Wishlist Season

It's almost Christmas which means it's time to start thinking about Holiday wishlists & gift-giving! Yay!

So over the next few weeks I'm going to be listing a bunch of different things, kind of like an ongoing wishlist. :)

Let's start with these Margaret Nicole cable-knit clutches. If only I were talented enough to knit these myself =) They come in either wool or cotton and in two sizes: large (14 in. across, $150) and small (11 in. across, $130) They are lined in cotton and have a magnetic snap closure.

Perfect for gifting or a great winter accessory. My favorite is the chocolate with the blue satin ribbon.

The Start of Winter...

is when the peeps up North fly down South in search of warmth..

and is also when the peeps down South fly North in search of snow..

I, from down South, have opted to fly even more South in search of a tan.

I'm off to Maui!

I will be back soon!

My turn to ask you...

You bought a pair of boots.

You've been looking for boots like these for a while. They are perfect in every way- great color, comfy, great price.

They are a size too big. Not a half size, an entire size. And you have size 9-10 feet, so you are already self-conscious about how large your feet are. You are convinced these boots make your feet look even larger. In actuality, they are about .5 cm too long and maybe a little too big all around the foot/ankle. But you can wear the boots. Especially with socks they are pretty comfortable. They're just big. And what if they stretch out?

And now the store is sold out of them. You cannot exchange them for a size smaller, but you can return them or exchange them for a different style.

What would you do?

Thank you O.C.!

What a great turn-out!

Even though the line went around the block, everybody was happy, friendly and cheery.

The Ballroom of the Holiday Inn @ Costa Mesa. The calm before the storm!

We're in business! As always, the jeans are organized by size. People are busily stocking up their Fall denim wardrobe!

Some happy campers patiently awaiting their turn in the dressing room.

Our next stop... SAN DIEGO!!

Swing by this Sunday, November 13 from 10-5pm at:
Courtyard by Marriott
San Diego Old Town
Fiesta Terrace
2435 Jefferson Street
San Diego, CA 92110

www.the-warehouse-sale.com to RSVP for free.

Stella McCartney for H&M

Yay for Stella, boo for living on the West Coast. Today Stella McCartney's line for H&M is out in selected H&M stores. Being stuck in Los Angeles, I can only drool at the pictures online. So if I were in New York, I'd wait in line early in the morning to pick up:


Knitted Blouson, $79.90.


Tulip Dress, $99.90.


Strap Silk Blouse, $59.90.


Chiffon Dress, $99.90.

Today Only -- 40% off at Saks & Saks.com!

Jimmy Choo bag, 1450 -> $870.


Luella tote, 1100 -> $660.


Tanner Krolle hobo, $1085 -> $651.


Marc Jacobs satchel, $995 -> $597.

There's an even better selection in the stores! At the BH store I saw some cutie Western Mulberry + Luella bags, flap-pocketed leather totes by Marc Jacobs, Celine and Rafe. I picked up a tweedy Stella McCartney... perfect for winter!

Saks Fifth Avenue

After-Gym Wipes

Stila Petal Infusions H20ff

Works great (even on eye liner). Pretty packaging. Not too wet and sudsy. Doesn't smell too bad. Doesn't leave your skin dry. No lingering scent.

Very clean. Love it.

Weekend Summary

In stock at Barneys New York. On Saturday I got a call from Barneys just as I was leaving that the Paddington Flats came in! In addition to this dark brown leather they also had black and tan. Tan was too matchy-matchy with my bag so I stuck with black. I figured it's a good classic color that will last me a long time.

They also got the loafer flats in-- very cute but not so cute in a size 10. Those were in dark brown and in the light beige. I loved the light beige! They also pinched my toes in a funny way. :(
...and... they restocked on the black boots! They were ridiculously gorgeous. I didn't dare try them on.

In other waited-all-fall-for-these-fall-items-to-come-out news, the Chanel Mademoiselle line is out. I'm not too into the bags (a bit mature for me) but I do love this clutch!

At $795 it is not a bad price for a Chanel, although somewhat steep for a clutch I'm not sure I need. They are having a Cruise Trunk Show at the Chanel in Beverly Hills this Thursday (12-4pm) so if I don't see anything there, then I'll reconsider the clutch. Meanwhile I've satisfied my Madamoiselle craving with a tri-fold key ring. ~.~

Also the Louis Vuitton Trapeze is out! Do you remember that post I wrote a while back about the page in Bazaar mag? Well turns out it was a Trapeze PM in Caramel. The Trapeze comes in 2 sizes, PM and GM. The PM is a slightly too-small tote and the GM is a slightly too-large tote. : Also comes in 3 colors, caramel (like in the magazine), rose (in the picture below) and beige which is a silvery-grey beige and looks almost white from far.

Bag shopping is endless! This season I'm going to skip the McQueen Novak bag (no matter how hot this bag is, it still reminds me of my childhood bowling bag) but I am starting to really like the Lanvin Kansas bag.

Does anybody know where in LA I can find one?

Do-It-Yourself Palette

Neiman Marcus finally got the Limited Edition Shu by Ai palette/compact in! (It's already sold out on shuuemura.com) I've just finished putting together my Fall Day-to-Night compact:

IR Rainbow 900Y - Highlighter
Gold Silk - Fall's gold eyeshadow duo
M Brown 875 - Liner

The best thing about this compact is that it's compact. Smaller (and prettier) than Stila, MAC, or any other do-it-yourself palettes out there.

Too cute.

I'm not so much a charm person, nor am I too much of a Juicy person. But this charm is just too cute not to share with y'all.

Do you see the yorkie warming his paws by the fire???

If I see this in person I may not be able to resist buying it for my car key.

Juicy Igloo Charm, Nordstroms.com

Someone stop me.

Okay I've been on an online shopping binge. I really need to be stopped.

On a brighter note, I finally ordered a pair of boots. The Ugg Uptown was received too negatively by y'all and the Nomad still isn't available and who knows when they will be. (And yes, ever since someone mentioned they looked like leg splints I cannot get that image out of my mind) So I've given up on Uggs and looked to Michael Kors.

Apparently there is now a Michael by Michael Kors line of shoes. Perfect for a non-committal LA winter buy!

Both $178.95 at nordstroms.com

Guess which I chose?

While Supplies Last!

Another gift with purchase... for a limited time only! With a minimum purchase of $40 from Sephora.com, you will receive:

0.05 oz Prada Eau de Parfum
mini Too Faced Lip Injection
15 ml Bliss Steep Clean Cleansing Milk
2 oz Philosophy Falling In Love Perfumed Body Lotion,
04 oz Givenchy Very Irresistible For Men Eau de Toilette
07 oz Tarte Glistening Powder in Sugar Daddy (soft bronze)
0.06 Benefit Dr. Feelgood
.08 oz Stila All Over Shimmer Powder *9 (champagne sparkle)
and a 0.05 oz DuWop Venom Flash in Gold tucked safely into a chic satin drawstring bag.

This definiltey rivals the gloss.com gift bag. So of course, being the sucker I am for a tempting offer like this i succumbed once again and decided this is the perfect time to stock up on Laura Mercier's Tinted Moisturizer, which, coincidentally, happens to be $40.

Plus did I mention Sephora also adds 3 samples of your choice to your order? Very cool.

So take advantage soon. These offers never last. The code (entered at checkout) is WISHFOR6.

**Edited**

Been eyeing Jessica's St. Grace pants? Teri Hatcher's Sweetees dress?

xxx is offering ALL of their merchandise at an additional 70% off. You do not understand how ridiculous this is.

St. Grace Marlo Capri's in dark chocolate and date for $22.50. That's about the price you would pay at Forever 21. (I got a pair in date)

Sweetees Ilyana dress? $12. Unheard of.


Je-Lee Palazzo pants, normally $105 now $31.50.

Pick up some basic white tees for $3.

Did I mention that shipping is FREE?

Enter coupon code xxx.

**EDITED** Due to the questionable reputation of this seller/online store, I've decided to take down the relevant information in this post. Although my friend and I both received our orders from this store, I have been notified that there were other customers in the past who haven't. I try to only recommend stores or items that I have had good experience with in the past and this fell under that category until it was brought to my attention that the owner of this store has a faulty record. I apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused anyone!

Free Beauty

One thing I can never resist, beauty gifts with purchase.

So when a friend told me about the gloss.com promo... I searched through the site to find the best deal possible, the most bang for the buck... the combination of items that will have me spending the least, receiving the most [free goodies] all while purchasing only items that I need.

This is not an easy task!

First off let's get the requirements down. For the big bag of goodies (pictured above), you need a purchase of $75 or more. For the free shipping, you need a purchase of $85 or more. $85 it is.

Now for the individual "offers"... the free Stila lip glaze interested me for a moment... $35 of Stila junk I need may be too much for a lip gloss that might be too dark for my taste. Next up... Jo Malone. Now here's a line I've always wanted to try if it weren't for the steep prices! No minimum purchase... definitely doable.

So after searching, this is what I decided on:

Which got me these following free gifts:

Then don't forget to click on the "SAMPLES" link on the top bar for an additional deluxe-sized sample to add to your cart. (One per purchase) I chose:


Here is the summary of my damage:


$55 + $60 + tax - shipping...

Not bad!