.big summer makeup haul.

just a quick [or rather, long winded] video on a few new beauty products i've hauled in over the last month or so. but be warned, there is quite a lot....

however, it was desperately needed and i've discovered some really great new products! my july favourites will be back in action and up in a week or so, so also stay tuned for that. a few of these items here may even have a little review on them so if you're into these kind of things, stay tuned!

happy shopping!
*click on item for where to buy.
josie maran coconut water-colour cheek gelee in pink escape

marc jacobs shameless blush in obsessed #204

tarte amazonian clay 12-hour blush in captivating

maybelline baby skin instant pore eraser [you can buy at any drugstore...i bought mine at target]

bite beauty lip scrub in whipped cherry

the balm cosmetics meet matt(e) eye palette

the balm cosmetics nude'atude eye palette

mac all about face in beige palette

lavanila healthy deodorant in pure vanilla

benefit badgal lash mascara in black

maybelline mascara in deep velvet purple (purchased at any drugstore...i bought mine at target)

l'oreal infallible silky eyeliner in black (bought at target)

smash box always sharpe waterproof kohl eyeliner in sumatra (penny lane was the other beautiful copper brown if you want to give it a try!)

.threads: those warm summer days.

can you feel it? the air at night is getting cooler. my light-weight sweaters are slowly finding a way back into my closet rotation and my tall riding boots are being dusted off. fall is just around the corner.

while i can't hide my excitement for my favourite season [at least in the clothes department!], i am determined to enjoy my last few moments amongst the sun. i simply need this last month or two of warm days to clear my head and to prepare for what's next. to prepare for what 'fall' means to me this year.

i should mention that this summer, although slow paced and really uneventful, has been one of my favourite summer's thus far. i'm sure you can guess why - it's simply because of that little darling, our jack bugg. we have spent so many enjoyable days outside doing absolutely nothing other than exploring and getting to know each other just that much better. playing, learning, laughing, a little crying, but just being in the warmth of summer and all the joys the sun can bring to a person's soul. 

so this year i have such bittersweet thoughts on fall. a time when i usually can't wait for cooler nights on the deck wrapped up in a blanket and a cup of tea watching the leaves change. 'fall' this year means so many different things...it's when i have to go back to work. it's when i have to leave my baby with someone else. it's when i have to enter the world of adults again. it's time for juggling my career and my family. it's time for yet another change. 

and while i truly think i'm okay and ready for that change, i also find myself holding onto a little more of those warm summer days. 

ps. and when you have a great dress like the lacy white beauty i'm wearing above, it makes holding onto summer just that much sweeter.
*make up: illuminate your beauty by ally stone

dress, free people || clutch, jcrew [old & gifted] || wedges, nine west || bracelets, stella & dot / club monaco 1, 2 || earrings, melanie auld

shop the look here

.currently loving: beauty + accessories.

1] melanie auld pave triangle necklace [my girl, mel has done it again! this pave triangle necklace is just perfection and a perfect layering piece. hell, it's a perfect stand alone piece too! so need this!]
2] bobbi brown navy & nude eye palette [my #1 newest eye palette must have! i need this palette in my collection, pronto! i feel a navy eyes makeup tutorial happening soon!]
3] clare vivier clutch [the ultimate fold over clutch! i have been drooling over this clutch since spotting [pun intended!] it at the beginning of the season and have finally deemed it a necessity for my closet. perhaps a little 'going back to work present' for myself?]
4] jcrew piled stones bracelet [jcrew has impeccable taste in jewellery and i have never been upset in a bracelet purchase from there. this has the most perfect muted coloured stones and i love that is could possibly go with everything.]
5] diptyque candle in gardenia [a candle in the scent of my favourite flower? umm, yes please! and these candles are rumoured to be 'the' candle to have....it's supposed to envelope your entire room's smell and last. although with that price tag, i kinda hope so!]
6] melanie auld mini teardrop necklace [probably my fav out of mel's newest launch and it's a complete winner. this will be in my closet, mark-my-words.]
7] bumble & bumble surf spray [want those long, loose, slightly tousles beach waves, well apparently this is the stuff that'll do it. a must have for summer!]
8] stella & dot madison tech bag in poppy [also want in it black, which is available in august. perhaps an early birthday present to myself?!? yeah, i think so]

9] aldo lace up heels [i can't decide if i enjoy the black or the leopard more and i am seriously considering just buying them both! they're just so so so good!!]

so, i'm curious. what are your current obsessions?
also! check out my picks on summer's 'currently loving: clothing', 'currently loving: home goods' and 'currently loving: children stuff'!

*contains some affiliate links, but thank you for helping to make fancy napkin possible by supporting my picks !

.need, want, eat, make: all about lips.

need || dior creme de rose plumping soothing lip balm [this lip balm is my absolute favourite and since i'm as addicted as can be, it's almost time for a new jar. this never happens [making it through an entire lip product!], so you know it must be awesome!]
want || cle de peau extra silky lipstick in 101 [the ultimate beauty indulgence that i have been lusting over forever. one day you will be mine....]
eat || cherry limeade slushie [i wouldn't mind staining my lips a cherry coloured hue if it was because i was sipping one of these!]
make || homemade vanilla peppermint lip balm [these sound [and look!] so fabulous, i am just dying to make these my first beauty diy]

.product review: luxe Box from loose button.

Today I wanted to share this super cool product "club" of sorts called Loose Button. 

It's this cool company that Quarterly [that's 4 x a year people!] ships a pretty box [perfectly named The Luxe Box] plump full of beauty products right to your door for you to keep and try out [you can also choose Annual or Semi-annual options]. What a fun treat! 

I just received my first luxe box and was immediately impressed with the products that they sent me. First of all, in my opinion, you can usually tell quality by the packing....and I have to report that I was very impressed! My items came all wrapped up in this gorgeous white box, with each product wrapped in cloth! CLOTH! Seriously, because of the packaging alone, I immediately thought what a cute gift this would be to send someone for the year......

I was also impressed with the actual products inside. Some are small tester sized, but most [and I'm not kidding here] are full to medium sized products! And these aren't your crap o' products. Nope, they are from some major brand names.....Moroccan Oil, Benefit, Stila, Cargo, Lancome, Philosophy, KMS, Laura Mercier, and Purminerals just to name a few! I also thought it was a very cool way to try out products that I've never heard of before, like the black skinny liquid eyeliner I received in my box by Eyeko.

You can watch a little video review I did showcasing each individual product below :)

**Also in my fall luxe box along with the full sized Eyeko liquid eyeliner, was a full sized China Glaze Nail polish, Benefit Stay Don't Stray eye primer, a Bamboo exfoliating pad, Moroccanoil Luminous Hairspray, Vichy Dark Spot Corrector lotion samples and Madonna Truth or Dare perfume. 

The luxe box costs $24 per season [so 4 times a year, as you get 4 luxe boxes a year], which includes all the products and shipping costs. Personally I think this is a great deal, because if I added up the full sized products alone, it would have cost me approx. $40!

So how do you get your hands on this? Well, first you need to request an invitation. You can do that by singing up here [trust me, it doesn't take very long to receive the invite]. Then you simply walk through all the steps and viola! Come winter [which is the next available seasonal box], your Luxe Box will be on it's way to your front door! What a fun treat! And just what this pregnant momma needed!

*Originally only offered to Canadian gals, I am happy to report that you US girls can sign up now too!

Hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

.my fall picks.

With the weather cooling down [yay!] and my inner style-maiden craving warmer chunky layering pieces, I figured I'd share what I am currently lusting over right now. My favorite fall picks.

As you can see, most has a sort of natural earthy native vibe to it and I am scooping up whatever I can in this style. They all simply elude warmth, comfort, and coziness and I cannot get enough.

I am also loving those darker berry shades for anything beauty related after a summer of bright corals and pinks.

And while I understand that my body isn't going to be back to normal shortly after the baby, I feel that most of these items are pretty forgiving and I have actually starting collecting a few of these for the occasion when I can get back into those 'normal' person clothes.

PURCHASE:

1. Geometry House Cardigan | 2. Penfield Wayland Denim Shirt | 3. Frye Paige Tall Riding Boot |  4. YSL Rouge Lipstick | 5. Antik Batik Dress | 6. Horizontal Arrow Necklace | 7. Lace Peplum Top | 8. Sunsets Embrace Jacket | 9. Rosalina Sparkle Ring | 10. Joe Fresh Cord Jeans | 11. Minnetonka Kitty Moccasin

.Currently Loving [part two].

no.1 | no.2 | no.3 | no.4 | no.5 | no.6 | no.7 | no.8 | no.9 | no.10 | no.11 | no.12

As I mentioned in a previous post, part one, Fall is only a couple months away [although you wouldn't know it with all this heat!] and I can feel it in my bones simply because of all the items that I am currently lusting after. Every year, without fail the stores fill up with goodies that I cannot seem to get enough of. Something about fall shopping and this time of year just has me wanting EVERYTHING!

So part two above is filled with a couple more attainable items that can be used in the last of the summer months moving into the brisker fall air.

*High on my list is scoring that cute jean jacket, something that I've been meaning to buy for years and would work great for this soon-to-be new mommy.

What are you currently lusting after? Send me some links in the comments below :)

.Pink.

I have never been a "pink" girl. 

However, these hot pink lips popping up everywhere has me wanting to try out the trend. 

So friends, help me out.....Yes or No?

And if yes, what shade/brand?

AND....will hot pink lipstick turn me into looking like Blake? Cause, that would be great.

.Nail Polish.

[via]

I admit it. I have got to be the World's hardest person ever on their nails.

My hands are dainty and small, and as my grandmother would say "Perfectly girlish", but the poor suckers get beat up to no avail. And it shows on my nails.

I moisturize. I groom. I even change up my polish every week, but the second I do something....BAM. 

A nail chips. A nail cracks. A nail gets broken.

And don't get me wrong, this post sounds like I am some girly-girl all worried about her nails.....but I'm not. Rest assured. I just wish I had a solution to this problem because, frankly, it sucks. There is nothing I hate more than doing my nails over-and-over again.

Any suggestions?

And in the meantime, while I hate just re-pinning pinterest pictures [it feels lazy], check out all these cool nail combo's popping up for spring.

I am in awe. Now does anyone want to come over and paint them for me?

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.My First Fancy Giveaway.

Just as the post title reads, this my friends, is my very First Fancy Giveaway!!

Can I get a Whoo Hoo!!

These MAC limited edition lip glosses could be yours to keep!

Aren't they just lovely?!?!

I wanted to send a huge THANK YOU to all the Fancy Napkin readers, new and old, and I hope you enjoy this giveaway as much as I am going to enjoy giving it to one of you!
{and who doesn't enjoy a little MAC love every now and again?}
I personally think that these are the best colors out of MAC's new Holiday line in the lip gloss department {or rather Dazzleglass and Cremesheen glass lips department} and I am super excited to give this little duo away to one lucky Fancy Napkin reader!!
{and remember! you can only get these colors in a pack at Christmas!}

Here I've modelled the coral lip gloss to entice you to hopefully enter
{and not to worry, this is my OWN personal lip gloss modelled here....yours will be shiny and brand-spanking new!}     

Here's what you have to do to Enter:

1. 'Follow' me on my blog {for all my current follower's, your names will be automatically entered}, and then I will do a random # draw.

***For those of you not sure how to do that, it's really easy, just click on the 'Join this Site' under the FOLLOW ME section and then 'Create a new Google Account'. Then just put in your email address that you already have {it doesn't have to be a hotmail or yahoo account, just use what you have} and then pick a password, and TA-DAH!

Pretty Easy right?

I will draw the winner Monday, December 5th. So make sure you check back here to see if you've won. 

Good Luck Friends and Thanks for reading!!!

xx

.beauty tutorial: date night eyes.

Lately I've been getting requests to explain how I do my natural smoky eye make-up. 

Which I find both flattering and awkward. 

Flattering because I guess it looks nice enough to ask how I do it, and awkward because I really have no idea what I'm doing. 

I've mustered through my fair share of wacky clown faces throughout the years, and have found that natural is always the best. I have also learned that browns and plums work wonders for my blues, and to stay far, far away from greys or silvers {they just don't seem to work for me}.

I like to call this look my 'Date Night' eyes. 

Husband gets these pretty much everytime. I might vary the amount I put on, but it's always a version of this one way or another. Maybe it's time I try something different........

Anyways, here you go friends....how I do my date night eyes.

My Video "Tutorial":

And some outfit pictures from our night out.

.My Bag of Tricks: Make-up Edition.

I'm just going to start off by saying that this is sort of a weird post for me as I'm a little out of my comfort zone here. I really have no {as in zero, zip, nada} formal training on this topic, but as a few of you have asked, I've decided that I may as well share my daily regime.

So, in case you haven't figured it out yet, I am going to share {in a few installments} my tried-and-true favorites for hair, make-up, and general beauty products. These are things that I use on a daily basis, and can't live without. Now, as I mentioned above, I am, by no means a beauty expert, but I do certainly have a few things that work for me, and I always love to try out the newest products {if only husband really knew how much my face, hair, and skin costs.....}.
I thought I would start with my favorite out of the three: Make-up.
Make-up is a fun one for me. Trends are constantly changing {new shadows, blushes, or lipsticks} so you never get bored, and I can always lose hours wandering around the cosmetics section of stores. You should see my mess of a make-up drawer that is now spilling out onto my counter. My wonderful hubby even bought me a lovely vanity last Christmas so that I can have my very own place to, as he so put it, "Paint your face".
{pictures of the vanity will be coming soon...working on getting the thing organized first}

 Now, I usually don't go for the outwardly wild and daring look, but sometimes, I do play a little. I will show you the products I use for my 2 go-to looks {day & night} and hopefully give you a helpful opinion on them.
{Day}
::Burt's Bees Lip shimmer in Peony {perfect shade of pink for the daytime, and makes your lips tingle}
::Clinique Super Balm {lip balm} {have been using this forever, stays on long and isn't goopy}
::MAC Lustreglass in Luminary {this stuff if rocking. not goopy and so pretty}
::Sephora Blush in Tender Peach no. 4 {perfect hint of pink}
::Revlon Grow Luscious Mascara in Blackest Black {now I actually use 2 brands, this is the everyday one though} {love this cheap mascara. stays put and makes my lashes look longer}
::L'Oreal True Match Pressed powder in N3 Natural Buff {have been using this instead of foundation for the summer. actually, i've been using this for about 3 years. light feeling and perfect color}
::Tarte 'the earaser' Liquid Concealer in Bisque (4 in one concealer. can't beat that!}
::Gosh Kohl Velvet Touch Eyeliner in Black Ink (soft pencil eyeliner. goes on easy and stays put}
::Gosh Kohl Velvet Touch Eyeliner in Bananas {I use this for my waterline and it helps brighten up my eyes} (this color is perfect for daytime. brings out my baby blues}
::MAC Eye shadow in Naked Lunch {Highlighter}
::MAC Eye shadow in Era {Base}
::MAC Eye shadow in Brulee {Base}
::Sephora Eyeshadow in Coffee Brown No. 18 {Crease}
::MAC Paint pot in Rubenesque {sometimes use this as a highlighter; sometimes as a shadow base}

::MAC Brush #224

::MAC Brush in #219

::MAC Brush in #227
::Sephora Eye shadow Brush

{Night}
::L'Oreal True Match Pressed powder in N3 Natural Buff
::Tarte 'the earaser' Liquid Concealer in Bisque
::Too Faced Bronzer in Snow Bunny {gives me a sunny shimmer & glow}
::Sephora Blush in Apricot Raisin No. 6 {little more color than my day blush, with a rosy tint}
::Doir show Mascara in Black Ink {plump lashes? ohh ya. this stuff works}
::CK Electric Edge Liquid Eyeliner in Electric Black {on my last leg of this discontinued product, but the pencil applicator makes it so easy to apply. heard that MAC has a similar one}
::Gosh Kohl Velvet Touch Eyeliner in Black Ink (Used for my waterline)
::Cargo Eyelighter in Gold {doublesided, this stuff is awesome. apply it to the inside and outside of the eyes and totally brightens them up. also don't be scared of 'gold', it's very soft and pretty}
::MAC Eye shadow inNaked Lunch {Highlighter}
::MAC Eye shadow in Twinks {Crease}
::MAC Eye Shadow in Brulee {Base}
::Spehora Eye shadow in Coffee Brown No. 18 OR in Sun-Kissed No. 78 {Outside Edge}
::MAC Lustreglass in Luminary
::MAC Lipstick in Lustre VIVA Glam V {gives me a little color for night. goes under my lustreglass}
::MAC Brush #224
::MAC Brush in #219
::MAC Brush in #227
::Spehora Eyeshadow Brush