Femme Fatales!

Saturday, July 31, 2010

Kraft Sizzling Salads

I know that for a long I've been saying I'm going to eat healthier, I'm gonna try and go out for daily walks, cut back on coffee, skip dessert....sound familiar?
We all make resolutions to ourselves which quite frankly seem...far fetched. It's easier said than done.

Being a heavier girl I'm constantly telling myself what I should and shouldn't eat. It's quite pathetic really. I'm like a mental girl who talks to herself AND talks to her food at the same time.
Personally I think my relationship with food is quite healthy. Nobody, and I mean nobody knows what practices you have when it comes to your eating habits.

There's always a common misconception that just because someone is heavier, it's because they've over indulged or gorged on food, cakes, sweets and treats. This is so untrue and the furthest thing from the truth!

With all that being said I must admit that I do try to eat healthy. Not to lose weight, well maybe, but mostly just to be healthy. And to be healthy we require the intake of a lot of fruit and veggies. I'm constantly on the look out for how I can make something plain and boring taste better, and by golly I think I found a great addition to liven up a plain jane salad.


Kraft Sizzling Salads!!

I don't normally give in to the hyp when it comes to advertising on t.v or in magazines, but I was mildly surprised at the tantalizing well blended flavors in my mouth. These dressings really perked up my dull lifeless salads and they're very affordable!

Keep in mind I'm not being paid for anything I'm saying and I'm not trying to sell any of YOU on anything, but if any of you try and eat healthy you know how challenging and frustrating and boring that can be. Honestly if you enjoy a salad and are using dressing anyway, give one of these a go.
Sizzling Salads, Asian Chicken, Southwest Chicken, Chicken Caesar and Greek Chicken.
It's like having a fiesta in your mouth.


Dice up the goodies for your salad. Blueberries are a wonderful antioxidant and really balance the flavors. For a source of healthy Omega 3 fatty acid add an avocado to your salad.


Dice up your cooked chicken.
(Personally I always cook extra chicken so I have it at my disposal and can make a salad anytime)


Add 2-3 Tbsp of chicken dressing to the chicken while warming up


Mmmm...looks yummy right?



Add salad dressing to your salad. Mix ingredients (all your goodies) and top with chicken.

It's quick. It's easy. It's nutritional!!

Bon Apetite!

XoXo,
Zxen

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

The Body Shop Goodies Giveaway Winner!


Congratulations - shootingstars123!
You are the winner of The Body Shop Goodies. Yay!

I will contact you by e-mail shortly.

Don't forget to check out next months fun giveaway. What will it be?
Stay tuned!


XoXo,
Zxen

Monday, July 26, 2010

A Picture is Worth a thousand words...

This week we have some interesting pictures to look at.
Let me ask you, why is it that sometimes the most sexual pictures are the funniest?
Let's find out.

Though innocent by nature....we ALL know what's really going on here ~.^



Funny in theory...just don't use this towel in the work shower...wouldn't want the Boss Man to get the wrong idea...or would we?


LOL...that's all I can say


A little pricey no? I'm just sayin'......I keed I keed ^.^

Hmm...you decide...funny or blasphemic?

Bwahahahaha...so true...so true!



XoXo,
Zxen

Green with Envy

Who wouldn't be Green with Envy over these beautiful items?
Not too light and not too dark but a perfect shade of green.
What's your color this summer?






XoXo,
Zxen

Photo of the Day

I wanted to start a series by posting a photo of the day from time to time or perhaps more frequently. The point of these posts will be to post one (1) picture that is funny, happy sad, will leave us awe struck, give us something to think about and is simply for everyones viewing pleasure.

To start, here's my photo of the day.


Friday, July 23, 2010

Purple Infusion


Are you ready for a purple infusion?
I came up with a simple elegant look using purples and pinks from my BHCosmetics palettes.
I only used two this time, the Matte Palette and the Shimmer Palette.
I have to honestly say the colors go on really smooth and they're easy to blend and last a really long time before needing to be retouched. But don't take my word for it, give it a try for yourself. Their prices are ridiculously affordable and with an 88 palette or even the 120 palette you get 88 or 120 different colors, omitting having to buy each color separately which can get quite pricey.

I am not by any means being indorsed or paid for anything I'm saying or showing you gals and pals, but keep in mind I've been to Mac, and Sephora and even the drugstores and I've walked the makeup aisles a thousand times over hmming and humming about what to buy and why it's so expensive? I'm a practical girl. I have a family to think of and cannot afford to get carried away with my spending as much as I would like. So when I found these amazing palettes which give me so many different varieties, I instantly fell in love. I even got my brushes from them.





Let's get started.

I always start with a clean face. Washed, toned and moisturized. Then I apply a tinted spf because we want to prevent, not have to fix damage caused by the sun. I'm starting to sound like a broken record aren't I? LOL
But even if you're only going to be exposed to the sun for short amounts, I can't stress how important it is to use sunscreen. Dark spots are so hard to get rid of without resorting to chemicals and procedures, so really try to prevent.

Apply primer to lids all the way up to the brow bone and conceal and then apply powder/foundation.



1. Apply color 52 from the Matte Palette from the balls of the eyes into the crease and right to the end of the eyes. Don't forget to add the color to the middle of the lower lash line. Don't worry about strong lines, we'll blend later.

2. Mixing colors 40 and 30 from the Matter Palette apply to the inner corners of the eyes, up into the crease and right down to the lower lash line.

3. Apply color 30 from the Matter Palette directly under the brow bone.

4. Apply color 18 from the Shimmer Palette above the brow bone and right under the eyebrow.

5. Now we are going to blend.
Using color 51 from the Shimmer Palette apply to the outer corner of the eye and blend into the crease. This will smooth all the colors together. Take the time to really blend, and bring the color down to the outer end of the lower lash line.
I like to bring the color up towards the brow bone on the outer corner of my eyes as well, I find this gives a more dramatic effect, great for a night time look, but just as wonderful during the day.

And there you have it. A purple Infusion. Now you can apply falsies (eyelashes), curl and mascara and your eyes are ready to rock!




As usual I hope you've enjoyed :)
Till next time,

XoXo,
Zxen

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

HumanWear Organic Tees

Hey Everyone,
Check out my girl Charmaine Leah on Glamology with her latest find which I find utterly adorable and tres chic. Of course, the fact that she's having a giveaway is even better, but even if I don't win the giveaway, I will for sure get myself one of these tees and you should too!




HumanWear makes eco graphic tees for men, women, and babies. Each tee is made from green materials, has a flattering fit and a light-hearted, thought provoking eco-message, such as ‘Greenlicious’, ‘Eco Chic’, and ‘Greenie’.
Tees are fabricated from 100% certified organic cotton or a recycled eco blend using non sweatshop labor. This fabric blend combines organic cotton with recycled polyester and rayon to create a remarkable material called “co-fi polyester”. It’s made fro
m used bottles which are ground into tiny flakes, extruded into a fiber, and infused into polyester threads. The rayon comes from plant cellulose, a sustainable source of raw materials.
In addition, HumanWear uses low-impact dyes and natural wash methods, biodegradable fabric softeners and natural enzymes for finishing.
HumanWear also use recycled paper hangtags, ship in recyclable boxes and buy carbon offsets so shipments are carbon neutral. For a little extra love, customers get to choose a free eco sticker and designer packaging tape for shipping so the package will arrive as a gift.

Be sure to check out the HumanWear online store, Facebook page and follow them on Twitter.
When you've done all that, follow my girl Glamology on Twitter and show her some love and support.
Rock on sweetheart!


XoXo,
Zxen

Monday, July 19, 2010

Blushing Roses...

Hello Everyone,
As I have stated in a few previous posts I have been busy playing with make-up and trying different looks. Shocking isn't it? I'm at it again when I normally only put on a bit of blush, lip balm and mascara but suddenly today I had an increase in energy and felt utterly inspired.

It's been three weeks since I've been eating healthy, and by eating healthy I mean getting in all the food groups required in a day. My sleeping habits have changed for the better and I find I'm not tired during the middle of the day anymore when I haven't done anything at all, now lets see if the exercise will come next?? But that's all for another post. This is about make-up.

I first felt inspired to create this look from roses which are prettily sitting in a vase on my desk.
The only problem is, I'm not sure how I went from this

to this?


Either way, I'm not complaining. I think it turned out fabulous. Guess once I got started, I couldn't stop ^.^


Lets break it down.
As per usual I used my BHCosmetic palettes for this look, all three(3) palettes as a matter of fact. Neutral, Shimmer and Matte. I started with a clean face. Washed, toned and moisturized. Then I applied a tinted spf because we want to prevent, not have to fix damage caused by the sun. Even if you're only going to be exposed to the sun for short amounts, I can't stress how important it is to use sunscreen. Spots are not sexy!!

From the tinted spf I went straight to the eyes. I left applying concealer and powder for after in case of fall offs, which would be much easier to wipe away without having to reapply everything.

Shimmer Palette

Neutral Palette

Matte Palette

Apply primer to lids all the way up to the brow bone.


1. Starting with the Matte Palette apply Color 75 to the lids following the arrows, you want to leave the inner corner nude and bring color up into the crease. Apply in the middle of the lower lash line.
2. Using color 38 from the Neutral Palette, apply to the inner corner of the eyes blending where you meet color 75 from the Matte Palette. Now bring the yellow color down into the inner corner of the lower lash line and blend where it meets color 75.


3. Apply color 53 from the Matte Palette just under the brow bone and really blend.


4. Apply color 38 Neutral just under the brows and blend into color 53 Matte.


5. From the Shimmer Palette apply color 77 to the crease of the eyes and sweep upwards. Also apply to the outer rims of the lower lash line. Blend Blend BLEND! Blending is key and very important for making the look more subtle as opposed to a drastic splash of color.

Now you're ready to apply eye liner and mascara and a pair of false eyelashes if you like.
I hope you've enjoyed this look!
I can't wait to share another look with you :)




XoXo,
Zxen

Growing Up is Hard to Do!

When I was a little girl, I grew up with Disney, Fox and even Shakespear (yes even Shakespear because you're never too young or too old!) movies just as much as the next girl.
My favorite movie for the longest time had been The Little Mermaid and I remember I wasn't happy until I'd watched it at least once a day. Believe it or not I still have the original released VHS version (well worn but still running and working) and I would watch it everyday still if a) I still believed in that sort of thing b) still had a VCR in my house and c) wouldn't think it so ridiculous to watch a girls Disney movie at almost the age of thirty.

Despite having said all that though, there is a small part of me that still believes, in faery's, in magic an in all things mythical. In my mind lurks Centaurs and Dragons...Prince's and Princess's...Faery's and Knights...because at heart I'm still the same six year old glued to the t.v. I was 23 years ago singing to some fabulous Princess tunes!




Romeo and Juliet



the Wizard of Oz



Alice in Wonderland
(Always was a little creeped out by a frantic giant bunny and the evil Queen of Hearts)



Cinderella



Snow White



Sleeping beauty



Peter Pan



The Little Mermaid



Beauty and The Beast

Much respect and adoration to Annie Leibovitz for sharing her fantastic photographic capabilities with the world. ALL, except for Snow White are her images. She truly brings my fantasies to life.



XoXo,
Zxen

Sunday, July 18, 2010

Something Blue

Who says feeling blue has to make you look blue?



Put on a pair of your favorite heels...


Slap on some nail lacquer...


Wear a favorite brooch...


Swap purses...


Put on a favorite party dress...



and give yourself a makeover.
By the time you've done all that, you'll be so tired you won't have time to feel blue anymore.


XoXo,
Zxen