St. Louis Style Collective Meetup

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Above photos taken by Taylor Mobley of blondeandambitiousblog.com

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Above photo taken by Carmen Ramirez of frontrowstl.com

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Pictured above from left to right: Myself, April, Anna, Taylor, and Carmen. (click the names to see their blogs!)

On May 21st, the St. Louis ladies of Style Collective had our first meetup! But it wasn’t your ordinary meetup. We were celebrating the launch of Style Collective’s new podcast! Just search “Becoming Fearless” to give it a listen. I love meeting bloggers that are located in the STL area. It gives me comfort knowing that we are all doing this blogging thing together, and trying to figure it all out as we go, considering it’s kind of a new industry.

The meetup was held at Blo Blow Dry Bar in Chesterfield, MO. About 30 minutes from STL. Blo was nothing but amazing, and gave us complimentary blow outs. I decided on the style “Pillow Talk”. You can see in the photos above :). It was my first blow out, and the experience was SO relaxing. I cannot wait to go back! They were so accommodating and let us setup our snacks on a table in the back of the salon. We had cheese, crackers, grapes, cookies, and of course champagne!

We also had the opportunity to collaborate with some great local shops! They were kind enough to donate items from their shops for goodies bags for each of the girls. You can see in the photos below what they gave each of us. Thank you to all the shops who donated! I linked all of their websites and put their Instagram handles so you can check them out!

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Paperdolls Boutique @pdshopgirl: They have the cutest clothes! I’m in love with the scent of the candle they gave us. I also cannot wait to wear those bracelets!

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Christopher’s @christopherskirkwood127: This shop has the perfect gift items! Christopher’s was kind enough to give us Pink Pig Soap, and a tape measure (are you surprised I didn’t own one of these!? haha)

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CR Jewels @crjewels: Our very own Carmen Ramirez made these gorgeous jewels and was nice enough to donate a few to us!

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The Spotted Pig @thespottedpigstl: Another one of my favorite local shops for gift items! This would be a great place to go for Father’s Day gifts! They were super kind, and sent us this Lucky Penny key chain.

I had such a blast at our meetup, and I cannot wait for our next one! If you would like to join Style Collective to experience local meetups, and to pump up your blogging game, you can join HERE!

Hope everyone has a great week!

Valerie

P.S.: I have an exciting Instagram collaboration coming up with a huge clothing company, so make sure you are following me on Instagram to see it! I can’t wait to show you!

 

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Christmas Outfit

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Shop The Look

Dress: Loft (Similar)  //  Blazer: Similar  //  Shoes: Charlotte Russe  //  Clutch: Similar  //  Tights: ASOS

Merry Christmas! I am finally starting to get over my sickness. I planned to have this outfit post up a week ago, but I ended up being way too sick to shoot the photos for it. Of course the day I shot these, it was so gloomy outside!

Anyways, I picked up this dress (I tagged a similar one since the one I found in store isn’t listed online) for under $3 (yes, you read that right!) at Loft Outlet at the St. Louis Premium Outlet mall. They hosted a blogger shopping event for the holiday season. I found SO many good deals including a Kate Spade tote for under $100, Nikes for $35, and a Loft layered sweater for $20.

We were also given the chance to have a bra fitting with Jockey, and it was so great! I actually found out I was wearing the wrong bra size. Their bras aren’t your typical cup size, they run by numbers, and are kind of in a way custom fit. It is one of my new favorite bras! If you get the chance, I recommend stopping in there.

Now, on to the Christmas outfit. I always love dressing up around the holidays. I guess it’s because my full time job is so casual, I never really have an excuse to dress up. This dress is perfect for Christmas and even Valentine’s Day. Since the dress is sleeveless, I paired it with a black blazer, black tights, and my Charlotte Russe stud heels. Of course, I had to add my signature leopard clutch. I literally wear it with everything.

Have a great Christmas everyone! Also, I’m having a Christmas giveaway on my Instagram page, make sure you head over to enter!

Valerie

This post was in collaboration with St. Louis Premium Outlet Mall. All opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that make Styled Muse possible! 

My Hair Care Routine

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It’s Monday, y’all! Did you have a relaxing weekend? Since the past few weekends have been super busy for me, I decided to spend this weekend doing absolutely nothing (which is why this post is going up today, haha). I think I left the house once, just to grab something to eat, no joke! But, I was able to try a new face mask and hair mask and watch a bunch of Gossip Girl. This is the second time I watching it by the way…

I shared with you a few weeks ago my skin care routine, and I thought this time I would share my hair care routine with you all! Before starting, I’m going to share what type of hair I have, since a lot of these products might not work for you. I have somewhat thin, wavy, very oily, hair. My hair is also somewhat colored (I have blonde on the ends). When I was younger, I had very thick, frizzy hair. But as I got older, it seemed to thin out a bit and is not as frizzy. My hairdresser told me that every 7 years your hair and skin changes, which I have totally noticed with my own. Now, onto my favorite products!

Shampoo:
When my hair is colored, I use Kerastase Reflection Bain Chroma Captive shampoo. It really keeps your hair moisturized if it has a little damage from coloring it. It also cleans my hair really well, which is a huge plus with my oily hair. Since I do have oily hair, I have to wash it every other day, which can really dry the ends of my hair out, and this shampoo helps out a lot! Once a week when I need an extra cleanse from having a lot of products in my hair, I use Pantene Pro-V Weekly Deep Cleanse Purifying Shampoo.

Conditioner:
Since my hair is somewhat thin, I like to use a volumizing conditioner. What really works for me is Pantene Pro-V Sheer Volume Conditioner. I apply it to the middle/ends of my hair (not my scalp), twist it up with a clip and let it sit in my hair while I wash my body, then rinse out at the end.

Hair Mask:
During the winter months I like to use a hair mask at the ends of my hair to give it a little moisture. My go to is the Kerastase Reflection Masque Chroma Captive. I use this in place of my conditioner once a week. It really adds the extra moisture my hair needs during the dry months. Once a month (usually on Sundays, see my Sunday routine here), I use coconut oil in my hair, and let it set for a few hours while doing other things around the house.

Dry Shampoo:
On the days I don’t wash my hair, I use Not Your Mother’s Clean Freak Dry Shampoo (the unscented one). This stuff not only gives your hair texture, but it gets rid of all the oil in my hair. This is a lifesaver for us ladies that have oily hair!

Styling Products:
The only styling products I use are heat protectants and texture sprays. My favorite heat protectant is the TRESemme Thermal Creations Heat Tamer Spray. I spray it on my hair before I blow dry it and it makes my hair so soft!  If my hair is feeling flat, then I spray a little bit of the Not Your Mother’s Texture Spray. It not only add a little texture, but it also acts as a light hold for when you decide to wear your hair in a messy bun :).

Hair Tools: 
My favorite hair tool is my straightener. It’s so old (I can’t tag it since I’m pretty sure it’s not made anymore), I have had it since my freshman year of high school, and it still works perfectly! I can use it on wet or dry hair (but I never use it on the wet hair setting). On the weekends when I am going to dinner or out with friends I use my ConAir curling wand, which is also a few years old. Another one of my favorite hair tools are the ribbon hair ties. I take showers and straighten on my hair in the evenings during the week, so to keep my hair from getting super frizzy and oily while I sleep, I put it in a pony tail using these. It doesn’t leave a crease in my hair, and it’s super comfortable. And they hold really well! I found these in the dollar section at Target.

Vitamins: 
To help with my thin, volume-less hair, I decided to try out vitamins that I have seen a few other bloggers rave about. I went to Target and grabbed The Olly Undeniable Beauty gummy vitamins. They taste so good! Like grapefruit. I have been using them for a couple months now and they are seriously amazing. After my first month, I noticed my eyelashes were a lot thicker. Then the next month my hair had a lot more volume! Now, I can tell my hair is growing a lot faster. I cannot recommend them enough!

What are your favorite hair products? Let me know in the comments!

Also, I’m starting a book club with some of my other favorite bloggers! The first book we are reading is Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert. We will start reading on January 1st, and our first Twitter chat will be on January 15th & 31st! Sign up HERE!

Valerie

The Kerastase Reflection Line was sent complimentary for testing purposes from Influenster. All opinions are my own. 

Black Friday Sales

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For the past couple years, Black Friday (or Gray Thursday?) has become a tradition for my boyfriend and myself. We start out Thanksgiving morning by looking at the online deals before heading out to dinner at my parents’ house. A lot of the deals you can find online in the morning, but they seem to go pretty fast. So we get everything we can, and then will get the rest at the stores. After we finish Thanksgiving dinner at my boyfriend’s parents’ house, we head out to do a little bit of shopping. With our tight budget, this is the perfect time for us to get most of our Christmas shopping done. Last year we got about 90% of it done on Black Friday!

How we plan:

We always look through all the Black Friday ads as soon as they start coming out. We make a list of all the items we want to get, and check the times the stores are opening or their online deals start. If stores open at the same time, we try and figure out which deal is the best and are priority over the others. Since both of us are not huge fans of crowds, we usually wait until the line goes inside the store, then we will go in. I noticed last year that a lot of stores had maps that showed you where all the deals were. Make sure you get one as soon as you walk in the door, and plan your route. It’s best to have more than one person with you, because you can split up to get everything if they are on opposite sides of the store. Once you have all of your items, expect to wait in the checkout line for a while, so wear comfy shoes! Last year it was about a 30-40 minute wait at Target, and the line was all around the back of the store.

Here are a few of my favorite deals I found so far (I will update this as soon as more are released) and what time they start. I also linked all the Black Friday ads so you can view them yourself!

Kohls:
Opening 6pm Thursday. Deals are also online (time not specified) 

-Get $15 Kohls Cash for every $50 you spend.
-LC Lauren Conrad select jewelry, key chains (cute poof ball ones!), and trinket trays ($6.99 each).
– 10-20% off all fragrances for men and women.
-All Nike 25% off (they literally never have Nike on sale!)
-Select boots 50-60% off.
-60% off select styles of handbags and wallets.
-60-70% off all outerwear for women.

Target:
Opening 6pm Thursday, with some deals starting early. 

-Tuesday November 22nd all beauty 25% off!
-30% off ALL apparel, shoes, and accessories.
-30% off all designer fragrances.
-Faux Fur Throw ($19.99)

Old Navy:
Online now, 4pm in stores. 

-50% off EVERYTHING in store and online.

Nordstrom:
Online Thursday, in Store Friday

-Too many good deals to list!
-View the women’s deals HERE.
-View the beauty deals HERE.
-View handbags and accessories HERE.

Macy’s:
Opening 5pm Thursday. Starts online Wednesday. 

-Select shoes and boots 40% off.
-Select handbags starting at $19.99.
-Urban Decay Shadow Box Palette ($18).
-A lot of beauty sets on sale, see them all HERE
-Michael Kors Top Zip Tote ($149.99).
-View all deals for women HERE.

 Bath and Body Works:
Online now. Hours vary by location. 

-See the VIP Tote HERE ($25 with any $30 purchase)
-Entire store and website buy 3 get 3 free.

 Ulta:
Opening at 6pm Thursday, online deals start at 5pm Thursday (central time)

There are SO many deals here, that I will just name a few. Click the link above to view all of them!
-NYX Box of Goodies Advent Calendar ($24.99) (this would make a perfect gift!).
-Urban Decay Eye Shadow Primer Potions ($10).
-Philosophy Shampoo, Shower Gel, Bubble bath ($12).
-Select Lorac eyeshadow Palettes ($18).
-20% off Clarisonic Holiday Kits.
-OGX Hair and Bath buy 1 get 1 free.

Sephora:
Online now. Hours vary by location.

-Tarte Intro to Tarte Deluxe Discover Set ($10)
-Make Up For Ever Artist Palette Volume 2 ($25)
-Will update more once it is released.

Tarte:
Online now. 

-Everything 25% off.

Kendra Scott:
Online now. 

-20% off everything with code SALE20

Charlotte Russe:
Online now. Hours vary by location in store. 

-Entire store $20 of less.
-Free shipping, no minimum.

Starbucks:
Online only.

-Entire website 25% off with code THANKFUL.
-$20 off $100 purchase
-Free shipping, no minimum.

Tory Burch:
Online now. 

-30% off $250 or more with code THANKS.

I will update this list once more deals are released. What stores do you plan on going to? Let me know in the comments! As always, thanks for reading!

Valerie

 

 

Kerastase Resistance Therapiste

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Happy Wednesday, loves! I know it’s been awhile since I have posted anything on here, and I wanted to explain a little bit why. I have been extremely uninspired. I think it’s because I see all of these other blogs growing and getting thousands of new readers, and I feel like mine is staying in one place. I have debated about quitting this blog and giving up multiple times. But I always go back to remembering how much I loved doing it. So, fortunately, I decided to suck it up and do it anyways. Why quit something I enjoy doing? And to thank all of the readers who have stayed with me from the beginning, I will be having a giveaway soon. What would you like to see in the giveaway? Let me know in the comments below or send me an e-mail at styledmuse@gmail.com!

Now, on to what this post was originally about, Kerastase Resistance Therapiste! I received this hair treatment complimentary thanks to Influenster. This hair treatment is for us girls who color our hair a lot and use heat on it almost everyday (very damaged and over-processed).

This is a reverse hair care treatment, meaning you use the conditioner before the shampoo (weird, I know). The conditioner (Soin Premier Therapiste) acts like a caring guaze to protect the fiber before you shampoo. It makes your hair soft with a lightweight touch. The shampoo (Bain Therapiste) has a unique jellified texture that envelopes the fiber to reduce friction. Delicate, damaged hair is revitalized, shiny, and smooth.

After using this product for only two days, I really did notice that my hair was softer, smoother, and less damaged. The only problem? It does not clean your hair whatsoever. I have super oily hair and skin, so after washing my hair with this treatment, my hair was still oily.

I have to say though, this stuff is great if your hair is super damaged, but only use it if you don’t plan on going anywhere for a couple days, or just wear your hair up in a messy bun (which is what I did).

Have you ever tried the Kerastase Resistance Therapiste? Let me know in the comments!

XoXo Valerie

Makeup Reviews Thanks To Influenster!

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First of all, I just wanted to let you all know why I was MIA for a couple weeks! I started a new job, which requires me to wake up super early (like 4:30am early) and I was trying to adjust to my new sleeping schedule. Usually I work on my blog posts when I get home from work, but instead I found myself napping because I was just so tired. But now that my body is used to my sleeping schedule, I am officially back! I have a lot of fun posts planned for you lovelies this month, so stayed tuned! Now on to the original post, and I apologize in advanced, because this post will be pretty long…

Happy Tuesday! To me, Tuesdays are the worst. On Mondays you are well rested after the weekend, then Tuesday rolls around and you are tired again and the weekend just seems far away. BUT I decided to turn my Tuesday into a great day by trying out a new lipstick (which I completely fell in love with, btw). I mean, what’s better than trying a new lipstick?

I signed up with Influenster (a website where you are sent free products to review) a few weeks ago and was sent my first box, the Bella VoxBox! I received some amazing products, and some not so amazing products. The first product I reviewed was the Dove Chocolate covered blueberries, which you can find the review on my instagram. I also reviewed the Sally Hansen Airbrush Legs (see previous post for review).

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Now I’m going to review the makeup products in the Bella VoxBox! The first product I’m going review is the Rimmel London Lasting Finish Lipstick by Kate (I’m wearing it in the first picture). When first opening the lipstick, I noticed that it had a nice smell, it smelled kind of like fruit! To my surprise, this lipstick was not sticky or thick whatsoever. I couldn’t even tell I had anything on. I fell in love with the color once I put it on. The only downfall would be it doesn’t last very long, especially when eating or drinking. But, to me it’s totally worth reapplying and I would buy it again in a heartbeat and try other shades!

On to the Rimmel London Scandaleyes Mascara created by Kate Moss. I have to say I was not a fan of this mascara (if you see the first picture, it looks like I’m not really wearing anything)… it did make my eyelashes seem long, but it didn’t give me any volume, it clumped really bad and smeared all over my face. Pieces were also flaking off and sticking to my contacts (was not happy). I will not be buying this product anytime soon.

The last makeup product to review is the EcoTools Complexion Collection Mattifying finish brush. The brush was actually really soft. I tried it with my CoverGirl pressed powder, and it didn’t really pick up much of the powder.  I feel like this brush would do well with loose powder, but I unfortunately do not use loose powder. So all I can really say is I would not recommend this brush if you use pressed powder.

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My last Bella VoxBox product to review is the Not Your Mother’s Deja Vu Do Style Extender. I tried this product in my hair (I blow dried and straightened it) before I went to an all day music festival (to really put it to the test). First of all, this product smells AMAZING. It smells exactly like what it says, apples and berries. It did do a little bit to protect against humidity, but my ends still seemed to curl up a bit (St. Louis is so humid in the summer that I honestly don’t think anything would completely help). This product is also supposed to keep you hair from getting oily, which I did notice a little bit of a difference. Usually the next day after straightening my hair, it is super oily. But after using this product my hair was actually somewhat decent looking the next morning (even after getting super sunburned and sweating all day). I would buy this product again and maybe try putting more product on the ends of my hair to test it against humidity again.

Sorry for this post being so long! I hope everyone has a great rest of the week, and stayed tuned for other fun posts I have planned this month!

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XoXo Valerie