What I Just Read. . .

Hi ladies! So you may or may not know that aside from my love for fashion I also have a love for books. I have at least 78 books in my personal library (not including my children books from when I was a child or the  e-books) and have read more than a 100 books (even though I cant remember them all) so I'm always looking around for new book to read. A few months ago I saw a review for "The White Queen" by Philippa Gregory on Elle and Blair and it caught my interest.

What is it about?

"The White Queen" is about Elizabeth Woodville the wife of King Edward IV and her life from 1464 to 1485. The novel takes place in England during the War of The Roses battles which was also known as the "Cousins War". The War of The Roses was a battle for the throne of England between The House of York (White Rose) and The House of Lancaster (Red Rose) that took place sporadically between 1455-1485. In the novel we see Elizabeth Woodvilles' rise to the throne, her falls, and how the Cousins War affected her life and the life of the people she loves.

What I think about it?

I love history so historical novels are one of my favorite types of books to read. So I was not surprised that I loved this book. Because I know about this time period from when I took a Great Britain History Class in college a few years back and because I read about these things on my own, I had fun connecting real life people and events to this book. Many times people tend to get bored when reading history novels but the author of this book Philippa Gregory (Who also wrote The Other Boleyn Girl) has a way of making historical novels interesting.  One of the things I really liked was how she weaved in the story of Melusina, a water goddess who had given up her fins to marry the man she loves who was a mortal. And in the story Elizabeth Woodville is actually a descendent of Melusina, so she sorta has these powers and believes in witchcraft, so it gives the novel a hint of folklore that keep readers interested.

Who might like it?

Readers who like historical fiction and fairy tales would love this story. Because even though this novel is based on facts and the author had to add her own interpretation and a bit of fiction to fill in the blanks on the things that weren't on record. The real story itself has the making of a fairy tale. Like how the King falls in love with a beautiful commoner, they have tons of children, how there are villains who try to do everything they can to take the throne away and there are even some real sad parts.

What about you?

What are you currently reading? Or what would you like to read? Have you read this book? And if so, what was your take on it? Also don't be shy to leave me book suggestions, I'm open to just about anything. Happy Readings!

         XOXO, Mayra

Awesome Giveaway!

Hi ladies! I'm back with another great giveaway opportunity for you all. The lovely Mandy from Orange Autumn has become a Arbonne consultant and in celebration on that she is giving away their foot soak and scrub from their holiday Pampermint Collection. If you like to pampering yourself like I do I suggest to give this giveaway a try. For further information on this giveaway just Click Here! for rules and directions on how to enter to have a chance to win. The giveaway ends January 6th so hurry and Good Luck!
                                            XOXO, Mayra

My Christmas. . .

My Christmas Tree

Hello everyone! Sorry that I have been M.I.A from my blog. I have been so busy since last week that I have not had time to write till now, but now I'm back and promise to update my blog as much as I possibly can. I hope you all had a great Christmas as I did with my family. On Christmas Eve my mom made our traditional Christmas dinner of tamales, pork beans (they taste better than what they sound I promise haha) and her famous potato salad. After we stuffed our faces with delicious food we waited till midnight so we can put baby Jesus down on is manger on our Nativity set.

After we have done so we can finally open our presents! Because my main gift this year were comforters for my new remodeled room and because I got a new scarf before Christmas my parents did not give me as much as other years but thanks to my moms' smart shopping skills they still gave me enough presents that would make any person happy. They gave me a few casual shirts this year that I love (A few are pictured below), pajamas and a pretty cupcake scented candle and black sparkly flats.

One of the shirts my parents gave me

"Difference is Beauty. . " true words have never been spoken

 

 

Shirt from h&m

Another casual Tee my parents gave me.

Sparkle, Sparkle!

My grandmother gave a professional french tip manicure kit. My sister gave me 2 pair of pants and 2 pretty long sleeve slouchy shirts. And my brother gave me $25 that I hope to use to buy more clothes and accessories after I have saved enough money to go on a mini shopping spree.

One of the shirts my sister gave me, Sorry for the bad picture.

My aunt gave me the cutest Hello Kitty watch with 2 charms and  a long peacock charm necklace that I adore! My best friends also gave me incredible gifts! Diana gave me a garden scenario frame that is very reminiscent of Alice in Wonderland, that I will hang up on my wall once my room is completed. My other friend Lilo gave me a fabulous black sequin scarf that goes with my sequin bow beret and a eyeshadow pallet from E.L.F with the most gorgeous neutral colors that I can't wait to try out myself!

The necklace my aunt gave me.     

The eyeshadow pallet my friend gave me.

On Christmas day we woke up early for Christmas mass and had leftovers for breakfast and just relaxed for the rest of the day. So as you can see I had a very good Christmas this year, and I hope you all had a amazing Holiday and that you all got everything that you wanted and more! I would love to hear what you did for the Holiday this year so let me know down on the comments below.
                    XOXO, Mayra

Dear Santa Tag. . .

Hey everyone! Christmas is now a week away and I'm so positively excited for it! Christmas has always been one my most favorite times in the year and not just because I get presents, but because everything is so jolly and there are pretty decorations all around me that makes me feel like I'm a little girl again. So in honor of this week I'll be writing Christmas related posts all week. Starting with a Dear Santa Tag that I got from Char 

Dear Santa . . .

Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? 

Hot Chocolate. Especially Peppermint Hot Chocolate Yummy! But I also love Egg Nog.

 

Does Santa wrap presents or just puts them under the tree?

Santa wraps the presents, and he wouldn't have it any other way.

 

Colored or white lights on tree/house? 

We actually use both! My tree has colored lights and the house has both white and colored lights.

 

Do you hang mistletoe?

Nope =-(

 

When do you put your decorations up?

I put them up on Thanksgiving weekend or by the first week in December.

 

What is your favourite holiday dish?

My favorite holiday dish are Tamales! A Mexican dish of seasoned meat wrapped in cornmeal dough and steamed or baked in corn husks. My mom makes the best ones in the world!

 

Favorite holiday memory? 

Wow there are so many to choose from! But once when me and my family were opening presents I heard a knock on our front door and as I went to open the door there was a brand new bicycle waiting for me. "Santa" dropped it off for me <3

 

Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve?

In my culture we actually have dinner on Christmas eve and open our presents on midnight (December 25)

 

How do you decorate your Christmas Tree?

Well this year we put colored lights, green, red, and silver ornaments in different shapes and sizes that have glitter, sparkly silver ribbon going around the tree till it reaches the top. With a oversize bow as a tree topper.

 

Snow! Love it or dread it? 

I have not been around snow long enough to know if I love it or dread it. But I did have a white Christmas once when we went to the mountains and I loved it.

 

Can you ice skate? 

Not at all! I'm so clumsy that I can't hardly maintain my balance ha ha

 

Do you remember your favorite gift? 

Wow! another hard question to answer. Maybe my first Ipod Nano when I was 15, It was the best!

 

What's the most important thing about the Holidays for you? 

Spending it with my family and enjoying each other company.

 

What's your favourite holiday dessert? 

My homemade cookies!! I make some every year <3

 

What is your favourite holiday tradition?

My favorite holiday tradition is putting baby Jesus down on his manger on our nativity set on midnight (December 25)

 

What tops your tree? 

A big oversize sparkly silver bow.

 

Which do you prefer: giving or receiving?

Honestly both. I like receiving but I also love giving! Especially when I'm giving them a present I know they will love.

 

Candy canes... yuck or yum!?

So yummy! If they aren't decorating my Christmas tree they are being smashed to be put on my Hot Chocolate.

 

Favorite Christmas show?

I don't know if I have one? I love watching all the old school holiday cartoons they pass on ABC family.

 

Saddest Christmas Song

Blue Christmas by Elvis. It makes me think of all those people or no longer in my life, especially my grandma.

Now I am tagging all of you! So If you are reading this then TAG you are IT!

 

The Style Series: Boho

Hello ladies! You have voted and the majority of the votes for my first The Style Guide Series post went to the Boho style. The Boho style is all about the laid back, beachy, free-spirited, reminiscent style of 1960′s and 70′s hippie fashion. Major celebrities like Nicole Ritchie, Mary-Kate Olsen, Vanessa Hudgens, Sienna Miller, and Rachel Zoe follow this particular style. On this post I will be giving you a small guide on how to achieve this laid back style, so keep on reading to help you find your very own Boho style.

Boho Wardrobe Essential Pieces:
As you can see the list of Boho essentials is very low maintenance and relaxed. There is alot of flowy-ness involved. But even by picking up a few boho inspired pieces and mixing and matching it with what you already own will help you create a nice boho look. . .

•  Maxi Dresses
•  Flowy Tops
•  Destroyed Denim
•  Long Cardigans
•  Flowy Skirts

 

Boho Shoe Styles:

  

The best type of shoes to wear with a boho inspired look are pretty sandals. But if sandals seem way too informal or the weather does not permit you to wear sandals there are other option you can wear . . .

•  Wedges
•  Sandals
•  Clogs
• Moccasins

 

Boho Acessories:

No outfit can be complete without accessories. Whit this style you can have so much fun accessorizing! It is all about layering. You can layer necklaces or bracelets, use rings that have pretty stones, and wear fantastic dangly earrings. When it comes to choosing your jewelry you really want to go with jewelery made out of natural materials, or in shapes inspired by nature. Try a necklace with a feather charm, wood bangles, or earrings made out of shells. Find pieces that use precious stones or made from beads (You can even make your own, if your crafty) Gold jewelry is also good option for a boho look. Jewelery can be as loud or as understated as you want with the boho look. Apart from jewelry some great accessories are belts to keep you from looking to frumpy, a nice hobo bag or a small cross body bag, and a nice pair of oversize sunglasses (You do not have to get aviators, they just happened to be my favorite for this particular style so I added the haha) 

• Long necklaces
• Dangly earrings
• Belts
• Hobo Bags
• Aviator Sunglasses
• Bracelets

Boho Hair:

As I said before the essence of the boho style is a very relaxed, natural, and free-spirited. So the ideal hair style would be a more messy and care-free one. Unless you want to go for that straight hair, parted in the middle look that also goes well with the boho look I would suggest to try not make your hair too polished. Some great boho hair styles are. . .

• Braids
• Beach wave hair
• Feathers
• Boho headbands

Boho Style Tips:

• Wear alot of diffrent prints, such as tribal, floral, paisley, and geometrical native insipired prints and use fringe as well.
• For that nature feeling use earthy colors such as browns, cremes, olive greens, tans, and white. But dont be afraid to add pops of nice colors such as yellow, orange, turquoise, and coral.
• To make the outfit more feminine use pieces with lace or crochet detailing. Also choose clothes with pretty beading or embrodeiry to make the outfit much more prettier and not so plain.
• Experiment with different kinds of materials when it comes to the boho styles. Use materials like suede, leather, and cotton.

Style Icon

My perfect boho style icon has to be Nicole Ritchie. She is the ideal boho girl in my eyes. Even when she chooses to wear dark colors instead of earthy ones, she manages to capture that laid back style by choosing floral, flowy tops and distressed shorts (Pictured above).


I hope you ladies enjoyed my first ever "Style Guide Series" post. And that this post has helped learned a bit more about the boho style and how you can achieve it. Thank you for reading and dont forget to vote for the next "Style Guide Series" post.
   XOXO. Mayra

Random Thought. . . .

When I saw this on Vogue.com I knew I had to share it. This wedding dress of antique tulle hand-embroidered with Swarovski Elements, beads, and pearls has left me speechless! It was designed by Ralph Lauren himself for his new daugther in law Lauren Bush who wed  his youngest son David Lauren this past year. I just don't know what to say, this dress is so STUNNING! that it made me lose my breath.

Introducing "The Style Guide" Series. . .

Hey ladies! So earlier this week I mentioned that I will be announcing a new series on my blog. Although I have already written a post on Wardrobe Essentials: Clothes Every Girl Should Have In Her Closet the list of essential pieces also varies depending on what is your style so I'm happy to announce that beginning next week I will be starting a "Style Guide Series" where I will be discussing different styles and what you need on how to achieve them. But I will let you decide what style to write about each week. On the side you will see a poll with 6 different styles and I need you to vote for the style you would like to see for that week, and depending on the number of votes that is how I will choose the style I will be writing about for that weeks "Style Guide" post. And it will continue to be like that until I eventually go thru every style. I'm really looking forward to working on this series, and I hope you enjoy it as well. So do not forget to vote or comment on what style you would like to see and thanks for reading. XOXO, Mayra

My Black Friday Purchase. . .

I know this post is really late but I wanted to wait for item a from JewelMint to arrive before I wrote a post about what I bougth on black Friday. I did not buy alot of stuff on black Friday but what I did buy I got  a wonderful price for them.

My first purchase was a 1.7 oz of Aquolina Pink Sugar perfume for $10. Sephora was having 10 items for $10 sale, where everything on a table was only $10. They had 10 items from each brand that included  Stila, The Body Shop, Lorac, Sephora, Laura Mercer, Makeup Forever, and others. So if you weren't there when they opened, chances were that you would not find these deals. Luckily I was there pretty early and when I saw that they had the Pink Sugar Perfume I knew I had to get it. I've heard good things about this perfume and when I smelled it for the first time back in May I knew I had to have it. The perfume smells like candy that makes you think of your childhood days with a playful blend of vanilla and caramel. *Sigh*

My second black Friday purchase was from Jewelmint for only $9 including free shipping. I'm not a member of Jewelmint but I did take the quiz from their page so I was registered, I just never bougth anything. That is until Thanksgiving weekend when they send me a coupon for any piece of jewelry for $9, and I finally made the jump to buy something. I chose this pretty gold-white crystal bow bracelet that appeared in my Jewelmint showroom and I fell in love. To me this bracelet is so girly and elegant that I feel like this bracelet would give a pop of something special to any outfit. And I'm so excited to create many different outfits with this beautiful bracelet. *Caution: Jewelmint is a $29.99 a month jewelry club, after you have made your first purchase with Jewelmint they will charge you $29.99 to your credit card each month. Unless you skip the month before the 5th day of the month or just cancel your membership completely like I did. Do not get me wrong, they have amazing pieces of jewelry but for $29.99 a month, no thank you*

And those are my black Friday purchases, thank you ladies for reading. I would also love to hear what amazing things you bougth on the busiest shopping day of the season. Also stay tuned this week for a special post announcing a new series.  

   XOXO Mayra

Style Book: Seventeen Ultimate Guide to Style: How to Find Your Perfect Look

A few months ago I purchased "Seventeen Ultimate Guide to Style: How to Find Your Perfect Look" by Ann Shoket and Editors of Seventeen magazine. I love style books, I love Seventeen magazine so why not give this book a chance right? Well ladies let me tell you that I was not disappointed one bit!

What is it about?

This book is exactly what it sounds like, a style book. The book is softcover with glossy pages and tons of pictures! It is like a magazine and scrapbook all in one. The book has 5 different style sections dedicated to a particular style (Girly, Edgy, Boho, Classic, Glam, and Indie) and matched to a celebrity that best represent that certain style and used them as the style inspiration. They also give you a list of essential wardrobe pieces for each style, the best stores to go to and look books, along with various tricks and tips on how to put everything together to create the perfect outfit. To add to that they also have a section dedicated to accessories and another to help you finding the perfect fit for your body type. Pretty nice right!

What I think about it?

I really loved this book, I think it might be my favorite style book from all the ones that I have (I have 2 more, so it isn't alot haha). I liked that this book showed examples of different styles and used a celebrity as inspiration. Also thanks to this book I was able to better see what style is more my fit, like based on what I like and what I wear I'm a mix between girly and classic which I can see now that I think about it. And I was thinking that maybe I should do a posts on the different styles this book like what are the wardrobe essentials for that particular style, what do you think? Should I write a post about it?

Who might like it?

Overall I think any girl would love this book. From girls who are more advanced in their style evolution to girls barely beginning to have a interest in fashion, this book has something for everybody. Because even if you do not fit into one particular style you can still mix and match whatever styles you love to create a look entirely your own. This book really is a fashion bible, and I guarantee that anyone who picks up this book will have something to gain from it.

What about you?

Have you read this book and did you like it? Or is this a book you are interested in reading? Do you have a favorite style book? Also, would you be interested in me writing a post dedicated to each style section, let me know. . .

 

Awesome Giveaway!

Hi girls! I have a great giveaway opportunity for you all, courtesy of LiveOutLoud (Right Here). She is giving away to 2 lucky winners  (1) 47 Makeup Clutch from e.l.f's 24K line to one winner and (1) 6 piece eyeliner set from e.l.f's 24K line to another lucky winner. All you have to do is go to her blog, follow her and leave a comment on who you are on any post marked CONTEST. Even if you are not looking for makeup for yourself you should still  enter to win these fabulous prizes for yourself or to gift it for your friend or sister for Christmas. Contest ends on December 15th so get to it and good luck ladies!