Beauty

The Count Down to “Get Fab for the Fall” Fashion Show

Well, as an honorary Cincinnista modeling in this show, part of my duty was the outfit selection. I visited my dear friend Rachel Hamilton today at the Co-Op on Camargo and, my, was I impressed. She first dressed my in a classy, textured grey wrap dress along with hip pumps by Jill Haney to start. Then we moved on to more a more casual outfit comprised of a elegant print blouse and contrasting, distressed, demin jeans. I will be topped off on Thursday with jewelry by Erin Wachs!

If you haven’t visited the Co-Op on Camargo you are missing out. The quaint boutique is conveniently location on Camargo Road in Madeira. Not to mention, the clothing, jewelry and shoes are to die for. What not to die over? Crazy high prices!

Love the flattering clean lines of this wrap dress. The perfect fabric weight for fall. Perfect for a day at work of night out!

Love the pattern and rich colors of this fun and sexy outfit.

The always beautiful Rachel Hamilton at work!

Great selection of fun, inexpensive jewelry.

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Get Fab for FALL Fashion Show!

Yes, the temps are high again, but at least the kids are finally back in school! Phew! Regardless, it is still time for fall fashion. Sooooo, please join me at the The Get Fab for FALL Fashion Show next Thursday, September 1st, from 6-9 at Unwind in Hyde Park. Sponsored by The Co-Op on Camargo, Erin Wachs Jewelry and BLOWN Studio, the fashion show will highlight what’s in from these top Cincinnati Boutiques. Beautiful apparel, shoes, accessories and jewelry will be for sale, and with a donation to Kenzie’s Closet, you will receive 20% off your purchase! This Cincinnista has the honor of modeling in the show as well, so if you want to witness my rusty catwalk skills, the more the merrier! And for those of you unfamiliar with Unwind, the upscale wine bar boasts a hip atmosphere with great wine and lite bites. See you there!

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Diary of a Middle Aged Bride!

Well, this Cincinnista is done for a while with the local fashion and local beauty posts, as I count down to 6 days until my wedding!

I am lucky enough to have found the man of my dreams, especially the second time around…so big check off on that item!

The follow items continue:

With my second (and last) wedding, we didn’t want to make it a big complicated affair but still, yes, a nice, intimate event. Our ceremony is basically a total of 8 people in our lovely, landscaped fountain courtyard. However, after that, we have nearly 50 in attendance at our reception.

The fact remains, whether you event is 50 people or 500, many details have to be addressed. From your attire to the food and drink, to the flowers and furnishings….myself as an aesthetically perfectionistic Cincinnista wants everything to be…well…Perfect!

A few notes:

-Dress and shoes taken care of months ago: White Milly cocktail dress from Neiman Marcus and much used and loved shoes by Jimmy Choo,

-Food: Beth O’Leary Catering out of Newton for the buffet dinner and appetizers. As usual, Dutch’s for an amazing cheese and meat plate to add to the dining palate.

-Flowers by Del Apgar: A mix of colored arrangements with white palettes to go with our color scheme. Del is always a master of talent and creativity. And yes, my daughter Elle and I have matching white bouquets!

-Server and bartender: My old friend Lou Mann and Ray. Been with me for years with parties and can never go wrong with their hard work and amazing personalities!

-Valet service: Prestige Valet. Used then over the years for parties at the office and have never gone wrong!

That’s it for now. This Cincinnista is extremely busy between work, kids and an upcoming wedding. Stay tuned for the final pics and updates.

Cheers!

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Nailtique: My favorite Get Away in Mount Lookout!

For those of us Cincinnista’s living in the Hyde Park/Mount Lookout area, a fixture of the area is my favorite nail salon, Nailtique. Conveniently located a half a block away from Amy Youngblood Interiors headquarters, Nailtique is my place to go for my regular gel manicures and not often enough pedicures.

In business for now 10 years, the nail salon offers a top quality product at prices more competitive than other fancier spas/salons. For example, a gel manicure/signature pedicure (my favorite)is $69 plus tip. I especially love their signature pedicure with the additional sugar foot scrub and nice and long foot/leg massage. Much more enjoyable than pricier salons I’ve been too!

Owner Kelly Hang bought the salon about a year ago after working there for 6 six years. Kelly, her husband, and her staff do a great job making their clients feel comfortable with their friendly demeanor yet attention to getting you in and out as quickly as possible. However, word to the wise, Nailtique is almost always busy especially during these summer months, so I highly recommend an appointment!

Visit Nailtique today!

FullSizeRender — Nailtique is located in the heart of Mt. Lookout Square next to Mount Lookout Joe’s. What a perfect spot to visit?!

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Peek of Chic: Stylish Meets Elegant

So In my quest for the perfect outfit on my wedding day, I had to find a pair of “wow” earrings right? My dress is very simple and off the shoulder, hence I’ve decided to wear some large scale dangling earrings to work with my hair styled upward. After many unsuccessful trips to other stores, I just couldn’t find the creative, yet elegant look I wanted. So…this Cincinnista popped in to Peek of Chic on Hyde Park Square.

I found several beautiful options and settled on a tiered long set of mother of pearls encrusted in gold and black crystals: quite the statement. I can even wear them after the wedding! Imagine that?:)

Peek of Chic has been a destination jewelry and accessory store in Hyde Park Square for over 3 1/2 years and been around even longer. Founded by Kerry Mock, the store focuses on women who want higher end, unique jewelry and home accessories with a flair. They even now carry amazing shoes! Check them out during your next trip to the square….I’m certainly glad I did!

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My Love/ Hate Relationship with Glasses

Well, as few people know, I decided to embark on Lasik surgery this February, in hopes that I could simply sit down for dinner with my fiancee, Tom or go to a nice event without pulling out the glasses.

The truth is, my vision starting going downhill I think the day I turned 43 in terms of my reading…so my first step was basic readers. Of course, as a designer, I wanted them to be hip so I searched hard for my first pair and skipped the cheapies at the drug store. Then I discovered progressive bifocals. I was so sick of taking those damn readers on and off that a salesperson in an eyeglass store convinced me of the advantage of this style. I mean it could be cool the keep the glasses on all day at work right? Clear lenses on top and built in readers at top. No blurry vision if I kept them on. Perfect. So I opted for two…yes, way too expensive pairs with custom lenses. Not to mention, two pairs of sunglasses to follow.

The problem now was that my distance vision was getting worse, and after another round of new lenses and NEVER being able to take the glasses off, I was at another crossroad. This Cincinnista was wearing glasses simply too much so it was either contacts or Lasik. I bit the bullet and did the surgery at the the Lasik Institute in Kenwood which was a great experience. Albeit the procedure is a bit weird I must admit, it was a quick recoup and almost instant results.

So here’s the kicker, while Lasik does perfect your distance and general vision, at my lovely age of 48 I still needed the readers…which Dr. Marino was very honest about. After 3 months of cheap readers, once again, I couldn’t take it and went back out to purchase 2 more pairs of prescription progressive bifocals. I know crazy, huh? I couldn’t use my previous ones as my eyes had changed after the surgery and my old prescription was too strong. Does any of this make sense?! Ugh.

In any event, as least now I can do out for a night on the town sans glasses while opting for a cool “smart” pair of functional glasses during the workday. I do have to say, this Cincinnista has certainly contributed to the optometry business here in Cincinnati this year!

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My White Dress Dilemma

Well, I’m sorry to say that this Cincinnista has little advice to impart on this post….but more of a complaint! As many of you know, I am getting remarried in July to my amazing fiancee, Tom. As many of us know from experience, with the second time around, so much less emphasis is put on the whole wedding “hoopla” right? I mean who wants a complicated, time consuming, costly event that only a 20 something has the time and energy for! Anyway, still being a very aesthetically oriented, visual person, I want to look great on our special day.

Which brings me to the dress: I refuse to wear a long white gown. We are not getting married in a church, but feel like something summery and white (ish?) would be appropriate. Lord knows I have plenty of black but on my wedding day? Hmmmmmm. My fiancee Tom says I have a great poppy colored cocktail dress that should fit the bill, however, I just still can’t get the need to wear white out of my head. Hence, I’ve been looking for white (or off white) cocktail dresses that would be elegant, yet a bit sexy. My waist line might not be tiny but my legs are still trim so I want at least show them off! So far, I’m having no luck. I did order a light pink lace number online from Neiman Marcus only to look like a bridesmaid from the 80’s. So that round was returned. I google women’s white dresses only to find they are either boring, too long, or too lacy….sorry just not in to this white lace thing.

Well, here’s my final shot: a trendy white off the shoulder dress my Milly. Definitely not your typical wedding dress. But have I ever been typical? Anyway, it’s in the mail now and let’s pray it works! Cheers!

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Beautiful Skin for the Holidays? Introducing Beautycounter!

PDP-GentleExfoliatorPolishingCream_SELLING-SHOT_528x962 — Winter skin blahs? This gentle, yet super-effective exfoliating cleanser sweeps away impurities to uncover fresh, radiant skin. Non-abasive jojoba breads help slough off dry skin, while organic coconut oil and aloe sooth and hydrate.

PDP-UpliftingDayCream_SELLING-SHOT_528x962 — Looking for a high performance day cream? Try Beautycounter’s Uplifting Day Cream. Soften and sooth skin while gently increasing elasticity. A combination of omega-rich natural oils nourish, yet firm the skin’s appearance.

This Cincinnista is always cognitive of her skin, good days and bad. But I want to talk about a locally represented line of beauty products that you can experience and purchase at our “Ladies Night Out” party next Wednesday, December, 9th! Local representative, Ceci David, will be here to showcase her progressive, yet proven-effective products. In a nutshell, Beauty counter is a personal care brand built on the belief the that products can be beautiful, effective, AND, physically and environmentaly safe. It’s like Whole Foods meets Chanel. In Europe, 1,400 chemicals are banned from personal care products. In the U.S. there are only 11. Beauty counter has banned over 1,500 chemicals and has stricter ingredient testing than anyone in the market place. Their products range from skin care, to sunscreen, to a kids line, to cosmetics. It’s an incredible company! Not to mention, Beautycounter has partnerships with J. Crew and Gwyneth Palthrow’s heath and beauty group. Check out their web-site and experience them on December 9th!

http://www.beautycounter.com/cecidavid/social/54455-Ladies+Holiday+Night+for+KWF

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