Alice in wonderland

With the New movie Alice in wonderland set to hit theaters in March 2010,(you know the one with Johnny Depp..nuff said..anyways..) there are tons of new items on the market with an Alice theme.
I am so excited because it's always been a favorite of mine.

Let's start with the new movie itself, i love the posters coming out and movie art has always been an interest of mine. I find the artwork sometimes to be better than the trailers.

Here is fave #1
I lie this full cast poster a lot. It is set in the rose garden and the line "We're all mad here." is just wonderful. Each character does appear as though they are in their own little bubble which is great. It's dark the way a Tim Burton film i usually presented but reminds me of the child's book at the same time.

Fave poster #2

It's a Tea Party! What little girl doesn't or didn't like tea parties. I remember having them with mom and dad. Invisible tea or water for those advanced and trusted little girls. Tea parties are the best. My 3 year old daughter currently enjoys all things tea party. She has a lovely set up and I must say my hubby has had quite his fill of imaginary cakes, cookies and very sweet tea (12 lumps Daddy?).

This poster has the Caterpillar in it which for me was always the mysterious character that i was trying to figure out. It's bright it's kind of a throw back tot he traditional drawings of the original Alice in Wonderland book. I love how it has open seats invite the viewer to sit and join the mad tea party. Make sure you have a clean cup and know some riddles.

Fave poster #3

Now I've seen a few different versions of this ..this is a triptych. According to dictionary.com the definition of a triptych is "a set of three panels or compartments side by side, bearing pictures, carvings, or the like." This has been broken up into 3 separate movie posters if you do a Google image search for "alice in wonderland 2010 posters." Each poster is unique and grabs the audience immediately, but standing all together it makes for a truly stunning work of art. Stil youthful, but mysterious at the same time. here you can infer more of the storyline and see some of the different locations the movie will take Alice.

Promotional items:

Okay one that grabbed me right away was the Urban Decay Alice in Wonderland eyeshadow Palette at Sephora. It looks like a little dark jewelry box. The colors are stunning and the artwork inside the box surrounding the mirror takes my breath away. It also comes with eye eyeliners and a mini UDPP. So very grown-up but reminiscent of a little girls jewelry box. At $52 it's a whimsical investment. Sephora store are also hosting an Alice in wonderland make-over party I signed up and hope to have a ton of fun. It's on February 20th. check your local Sephora store for details.

O.P.I. is another company with a taste for the maddness! When you go to their site they have a full page ad for the new nail lacquers inspired by the movie. My fave of this set is "Off with Her Red!" There is also a contest they are running witha grand prize of a JCP salon gift card and the entire set of Alice in Wonderland inspired nail Lacquers.

This is just so cool from Tetley Teas Canada. They are having a Mad Hatter Tea Party contest. The prize is amazing including everything you need to throw a grand tea party and watch Tv in style with a brand new Panasonic system.

Books to go with the Alice in Wonderland theme:

Check your local library for these entertaining books.

I love these books by Frank Beddor. He too is trying to make them into a movie series but with Burton's film out who knows where this is going. However the books are FAbulous! The series is called The Looking Glass Wars. It is the true story of what really happened to Alyss Heart of Wonderland. According to this series Carroll got everything wrong. It's an adventure series filled with really cool elements and unforgettable characters who are both familiar and very different from the Carroll version of Wonderland.

The Annotated Alice: The Definitive Edition

by Lewis Carroll is a compendium of information straight from the author and lets the reader in on the nuances of Victorian jokes, lifestyle and jargon so that one can better understand the novel he wrote. The book itself is a decadent addition to any library. It's strong red cover with intricate edging detailing just makes the fingers itch to open it and dive into the world of Alice.

I hope this has you excited to see the movie and dive into wonderland. I know I am!

Until next time!

Shoes shoes shoes

Okay so it's been a while since i have last posted. However i think this is worth the wait. I have forgotten to list my love of shoes in my about me stuff, however that will be mended.

Here are some cute shoes i have purchased recently. They are to celebrate weight loss and just take up beautiful space in my closet.

let's start with a basic: Mary Janes. The picture below is the J Crew version of my heeled MJs. They are high and shiny and wonderful. Mine are by Delicious and they are called Shiny. I got them for about $20 with shipping on ebay. Yes that's right - a total of $20.
The object with the shoes that i am showing is to just lengthen my legs and celebrate me getting back to my shape. The shoes are fun and sassy. Uber high and almost put me at eye level with my hubby, which is neat.

Pair #2

This is by Paprika (An inexpensive brand, but they come out with cool stuff all the time). I paid with shipping a total of $23 for these on ..yes again Ebay. They are called Saco and are in gunmetal. I don't think this picture does justice to these elegant and tough looking heels. It makes them look short and stubby, when they are long and slender. They make legs look miles long. Doing heels with studs is a new thing for me, as i love ruffles and buckles or just a pain shoe, however i wanted to try something new and Saco fit the bill perfectly.

Now for my fave of the new additions to my shoe collection: (in transit right now)



This is a double platform pump in satin. Gorgeous red satin. Take a look at that sexy lil ruffle. It is just to die for! I have a Sally Hansen nail polish that is the exact same shade. Now this one was a bit more expensive but i belive so worth it @ $42 including shipping. On ...ta dah Ebay! The heel is an extreme 5" the platform is 2". All i can say is wow and double wow.

So what am I wearing for the holidays? These lovely jewels:



These lovely leather Caparros call Dux are just stunning. At $28 on Ebay a steal (MSRP $75)! They will go perfectly with my purple holiday dress and any other dress i may need to go out dancign and partying. A littl elower with a 4 inch heel but none the less sexy and stylish. On ebay Show Metro was the seller and i love thier bargains! The bling on the toe is just enough but not over the top. Tip: did you know that Capparos is woman owned by a Boricua ( Puerto Rican)? Yes it is! Great US company.

It has been a great time for shoe shopping and I hope you all have found your holiday shoes. I'd love to see them. Merry Christmas!

Manor Hall Soap Company ..More fun with Soap

After having success with Manor Hall Soap Company's Natural shampoo for dry Hair, I have made another purchase and i have to say I'm growing in my love for this company!

Got another Sulfate free shampoo for Dry Hair which is great stuff for those with risos (curls). A little bit goes along way and this hydrates like nothing else because it has olive oil in it and coconut oil ( my faves!) For hair that is when completely wet goes between my shoulder blades, I use about a nickel to just under a quarter size size of product to get all soapy and clean. My hair feels like it is clean and hydrated. Lather is enough for all of you who love bubbles. The smell of geranium, rosewood and peppermint essential oils leaves my hair smelling great. It's not overly flowery or too heavy which is fabulous!

I also got The Classic Soap Sampler. These lovely little gems are delectible.
here is the description from the website:
This sampler stack is a great way to try a few different flavors of Manor Hall natural olive oil soap. All four are tied together, and topped off with a Manor Hall hang tag. Makes a great gift for yourself, and is also an ideal way to introduce someone you know to the wonderful feeling of Manor Hall natural olive oil soap. Flavors vary by availability.

Each bar weighs approximately one ounce. Each stack is weighed before they are sleeved, and together will always total 3.5 to 4 ounces or above.

The flavors i got are:

• Ohh La Lavender & oatmeal
• Almond Sunset
• Spearmint Grapefruit
• Orange Tree Blast

The neatly packaged soaps are great sizes for travel and are a treat for the body and senses. The combined smell is amazing. If i ever get a chance to go tot the Massachusetts I so want to walk in to smell the wonderful scents of Manor Hall. These are natural oilve oil soaps and theya rea all made in small batches. Attention to detail, care and love for product is what MHSC is all about.

These soaps left my hands feeling soft and clean without the dryness of conventional soaps you pick up at the grocery store. My hands have ascent but not over powering just a light clean scent of whichever soap i used. Lovely. These soap samplers are perfect for gifts and for little hands. My daughter was able to handle it perfectly without dropping it or it slipping out of her hands ( she'll be 3 in Dec). That made the sampler 100% worth it right there.

The Classic Sampler set is $7.35 and wold be a greta stocking stuffer or gift to introduce MHSC to any friend.

I also got the Carrot & Fennel Seed Complexion Bar. This 3.5 ounce bar is a wonderful miracle. leave my face hydrated clean and again..Fabulous! Doesn't dry or leave my skin overly tight. Just the right amount of everything. At $5.85 this is a steal!


As a bonus with my order I got as my Order Box Freebie (they usually have a freebie with any order) A Full size Honey Me Smooth Soap Bar. Again a full size is 3.5 ounces.

here is the description:
This kind and gentle honey almond soap bar contains the moisturizing protection of real honey and the rich softness of replenishing almond meal.

Honey is a natural humectant, grabbing and holding on to moisture while its antioxidants protect. Smoothing and softening, almond meal is gentle and non-irritating. It helps reduce inflammation, replenishing essential skin oils lost through cleansing.

This soap bar feels wonderful to use, leaving behind a rich barrier of velvet softness to ease and protect your dry or sensitive skin.

FABULOUSCITY! -nuff said

My other little bonus was a sample of the Deep Conditiong Creme. Featuring Shea Butter and jojoba oil. Used as a conditioning treatment pre-shampoo this little gem is thick and penetrating. If you use gel and product in your hair like i do daily i would rinse it out and lay in the creme and set with a warm towel. This is potent stuff. My daughter had frizzy risos and i just lightly rubbed my figer tip over the product and tried it on her Virgin hair. Let me say that her curls were shiney and soft and like moisture never hit them in the wrong way. The scent is pretty and I have found the company to take care of my baby's hair once we get out of the tear free stage. Thank You Manor Hall. For myself i know this will be a great at home luxurious spa treatment for my hair..now to make the time..hmmm...

I hope that you have enjoyed reading about Manor Hall Soap company and will give them a try. I promise youthey will not dissapoint!

Ciao for now!

New bracelet!

Creativity continues to flow. I have a new bracelet i made ( actually had materials to make 2 of them). I call is Alma de Tierra because it has these beautiful faceted turquoise beads and these cool Capri Gold Czech glass beads to compliment them.

I just put them up in my Artfire store. Even thought he beads say they are gold in color it looks more like a high shine copper...almost like copper foil. Delicate against the strong turquoise beads which look great faceted. I hav a thing for faceted beads they just have such great dimesnion and i LOVE the way they catch light.

Still Trying to close up the necklace in progress and i need to get some suede cord for the turqouise pendant i have. If it seems like i'm a bit turqouise obsessed..yes i am. I do plan on moving on eventually out of my Turquoise Phase if you will.

The turqouise is more blue because of copper present in the vien wher eit was extracted. when turqouise is more green the more Iron is present in the rock surrounding it. I happen to love Turqouise in all it's forms and colors. which is why I create with it so much. Being inthe southwest there is a definete market for it and I just love how it looks on all skin types. Will post more jewelry when it's created. Until next time!

Buff'd Cosmetics Samples

As part of a campaign to promote the Buff'd Cosmetics products I have requested samples from Buff'd when they emailed their followers that they needed bloggers to review some products. Being a fan already I happily accepted the challenge.

Buff'd is a company out of Canada and has a high standard of product and customer care. It's why this Texas gal loves to order from them. I have blogged about them before with glowing reviews which you can read. See May and July on the right side bar for previous posts.

My package came with foundation, finishing powder, a bronzer, Illuminating Dust, blush, eyeshadow and eyeliner (10 samples in all). A little something from each department. I love the Buff'd foundations. The original Formula works great on me. I have oily skin and i have no need to go for a more intense coverage formulation. It's great at keeping oils at bay and doesn't feel heavy or cakey. Here is info straight from their Foundation portion of their website:

mineral foundation

Formulated using only the finest natural minerals and pigments, Buff'd Mineral Foundations have outstanding versatility and wear. Available in an extensive collection of shades and three outstanding formulations, a minimal amount of product will help you achieve a flawless, radiant look while natural UV protection guards your skin. As with all our products, Buff'd Mineral Foundations are free of irritating and toxic ingredients which may be damaging to some skin types.

The Kabuki, Jumbo Buffer and Jumbo Flat Top brushes are perfect for applying these loose-mineral powders.

Available in three outstanding formulations:

original: a great full-coverage foundation with fantastic oil absorption and natural UV protection. ingredients: titanium dioxide, zinc oxide, mica, iron oxides, ultramarines

light: specifically for those who prefer a lightweight foundation that still offers buildable coverage and great oil absorption. ingredients: mica, titanium dioxide, zinc oxide, iron oxides, ultramarines

concealing: made with a touch of kaolin clay offering even better coverage with greater oil absorption. Ideal for those with combination to oily skin and a great spot concealer. ingredients: titanium dioxide, zinc oxide, iron oxides, kaolin clay, mica, ultramarines

My Colors for the year are Apricot and Pecan. Pecan for when i have more of a tan going on and Apricot for the winter season. They are just wonderful and at $18, 21grams volume in a 10gram weight sifter jar is just perfect. This foundation lasts all day and i do mean all day i have worn it from 8:30 am to 2am with no problems and even forget it's on.

The finishing powder in Peony is great for those days that i really need staying power and a flawless finish without drying out. I use this more in the winter when my skin tends to get a little dry. At $15 for th full size it's a great investment powder. The generous sample baggies are also great if you are strapped for cash.

The Bronzer in Toast is fabulous. It has a wonderful shimmer to it and make me think of the beach. i use it to conture and make me look a little thinner in the cheeks. also for a pick me up if my skin is just looking blah that day. A little goes a long way. The full size is $15 and picture on the website make it look darker than it truly is so order the sample bag to test out the shades. If you are confused but know your foundation shade the staff is more than willing to help you color match for a flawless set of colors appropriate to your coloring.

On to the eyeshadows and blush...the really fun stuff:

The Blushes: Thrift and Bouquet.

Thrift is one of my faves. It is a bronzy pink and just gives the apples that just kissed look. It makes me very happy and is great a a light pink blush when doing a smokey eye. Very little is required to give you that glowing look.

Bouquet is a light pink that i love to use as well. It's that color that reminds me of a soft pink rose and that is what you get on the cheek. Very classic looking but with enough shimmer to be modern.

The blushes cost: $15
full size jar: 14 grams volume / 3 grams weight
sample size: 1/4 teaspoon sample bag

Illuminating dust:

Think of this as an allover product that gives you that extra glow with your look. Canvas has high shimmer but is extremely subtle when used with a light hand. The site says it's a soft and luminous off white and that it is. Another make you happy on a cloudy day product.

The full size Illuminating dust costs: $15

full size jar: 14 grams volume / 3 grams weight
sample size: 1/4 teaspoon sample bag

Eyeshadows:

Scribe: Blue Base in the Smoky Eye Kits - Slate Blues Collection.

Great base color, goes on light and opens the eye nicely.
very soft and easy to put on.

Denim: Cool medium blue with silver shimmer. Blue Crease in our Smoky Eye Kits - Slate Blues Collection. This one looks more grey than blue in the baggie but on the brush you can see the blue properties of the shadow. it was great for the smokey eye look i was building.

Nova: a Mineral Eyeliner. Midnight slate blue with silver blue shimmer. Blue Liner in our Smoky Eye Kits - Slate Blues Collection.

I used it as a crease color and it worked wonderfully. I love how it looks like my dark jeans that i wear all the time. The look was very pretty and soft for a smokey eye.

I am in love with this company and shipping for samples is free. Shipping to Texas takes about 2 weeks but i am very happy with service and all the products i have purchased so far. I hope to see more from this growing company in the future as they have me with their uber fabulous foundation and now going into blush and eyeshadow.

Check them out at: http://www.buffd.com

New items for Fundraiser and store

Having my beads come in from the mail is always exciting it gets the design jucies and creativity flowing. I just get inspired.

I was able to create quite a bit of jewelry. some going to a silent auction fundraiser for the school attached to my church, and from that i have new items to put in my store as well because they are reproducible.

First up: Cherries in the Snow
This set of earrings has Czech glass in clear aurora borealis and a dark cherry red. I've always loved the idea of red on snow or when you get shaved ice and the first drops of cherry red syrup hit the serene white canvas of ice. and that is what inspired me for this set of earrings. what i love is youcan give them a shake and the "Cherries" end up in different spots so you never have the same look twice. Set on silver chain it's just a fun set of earrings.

Icicles
This is a simple and elegant pair of earrings. The silver wire was hand shaped and there is just a bit of lovely sparkle with the Swarovski bicone at the end of the wire. I love this because it reminds me of wavy hair. It also reminds me of what an icicle looks like when the sunlight hits it for the first time. Shiny, delicate and serene. The great thing about these is that they are easy to customize. so going to be a staple at A Different Shade of Me.

Got a few bracelets done. I seem to be on a natural gemstone thing as well, because a lot of these pieces have natural stones. They are truly lovely.











This bracelet is called Calming Copper.
I really like the chocolate button pearls used in this bracelet. The copper freshwater pearls are warming to the skin and great for any skintone. The Turquoise nuggets are a calming shade of green turquoise with brown in there that is just earthy and soothing to look at. I often find myself staring and looking at the crevasess and the patterns on each nugget and marvel at how time and pressure created this beautiful component to my bracelet.


This Bracelet I made for the fundraiser and it's called Cool Moss.

The green jasper is dark and moody. Been experimenting with chain and i love the delicate look it has with the beads and that it's asymmetrical. It even has a lime green pearl that is just bright and delicate looking against the earthy green of the Jasper. It's just lovely.

Industrial Waves Earrings

These earrings are just so neat. I'm sorry the pic isn't more clear. I forgot to take them out while i was outside. I was in a rush to drop off the fundraiser items (of which this is one). The hand forged copper teardrops are from England and the pearls are a gorgeous blue. You see the rocky texture of the back but the other side has this very smooth side that is just like blue steel. The contrast is just wonderful.

I do have one more bracelet t that i completed but the sun went down before i could move it due to the glue. Can't wait to post about it tomorrow.

Also making a birthday present for a friend and she wants something in fuchsia and black. This great that I'm getting so inspired and creative. I look forward to making more and sharing more with you all.

Creativity abounding

New necklace in the works. Don't even know the name of it yet. It stared as a matching piece to the Tears of Joy earrings but it's something else or it could go with it bu hmmm you decide.

Right now it's just a work in progress.

First pic is a not so good shot of the center drop beautiful faceted glass and an aquamarine Swarovski bead on Sterling silver wire. With glass pearls in cream.
Next up the stage right of the necklace with Czech glass oblong bead amoung the creamy pearls.


Lastly, the stage left of the necklace, variegated sizes of pearls with a Swarovski aquamarine bicone. It's just lovely.


Just bought a clasp off etsy to go with the necklace and i'm sure it will turn out to be just marvelous.

Work in progress...will post final pictures when the necklace is finally arranged.