Tag Archives: blogger

Inspired & Organic: Quench Naturel

At the end of last year, I was introduced to a wonderful line of all natural face, body and hair products called Quench Naturel. The co-founders launched their new Sweet Moringa collaboration at beautiful Singh Meadows in Tempe, and I was invited to preview this new line. It was a lovely evening of sips, eats, and getting to know the Quench Naturel products.

The Sweet Moringa line is a collaboration between Quench Naturel and Singh Meadows, using Singh honey and Moringa powder to create a line that is moisturizing and nourishing.

I have been using the Quench Naturel products since December of last year, and the results have been simply amazing! My favorite products by far are the Get Whipped Body Souffle and the Sweet Moringa Botanical Body Mousse. Both have butters and oils that penetrate dry skin and restore moisture. I had come to my wits end regarding my feet because I have tried everything to moisturize and heal them. In a desperate and last ditch attempt before seeking professional help, I used the Get Whipped Body Souffle on my feet. In the first week of use, the dry skin completely disappeared and the cracks on my heels have completely healed!

Another favorite is the lip balm, and I was given the Sweet Moringa Emerald Honey Lip Quench. In this dry Arizona heat, the Lip Quench is a staple in my everyday make-up routine, whether alone or under a lipsick or gloss. I have also tried the Sweet Lip Scrub, which tastes as good as it works!

Not only is Quench Naturel an ethical company who believes in sustainability, they also do not test on animals. Additionally, their products contain all natural ingredients, and they are very transparent about what they use, listing them all on their site, along with their benefits (here). Being that my skin is very sensitive, I need products that will not cause irritation and I am so happy that I have finally found products that work with my needs!

Phoenix Fashion Week: Spring Into Style 2019

This Saturday is Phoenix Fashion Week’s “Spring into Style” event, showcasing six top Arizona stylists with six runway shows, and one stylist will win “Stylist of the Year”. There will also be pop-up shops, beauty product samples, sips and treats. I’ll be there as well, with fellow San Diego Style Blogger, Susan of Styles Revealed, who recently moved to Chandler! Tickets can still be purchased at www.SpringIntoStyle2019.eventbrite.com, and range from $50 to $125.

Featured stylists include:
• Ashley Paige – 80’s Fashion
• Beth Yohanny – White on White
• Braden Conwell – Utility
• Candace Carter – Monochrome
• Jazmine Nash – All Doll’d Up
• Timothy Boado – Men’s Box Suits

In the meantime, here are some pictures from last year’s Phoenix Fashion Week 2018 runway shows, including what I wore each night. Cheers!

Tiffany of Glitz and Glam by Tiff, interviewing designer, Qmulative

My favorite gown by designer Svetik Haute Couture (photos by Tiffany)

Getting interviewed by model, Bianca Mead, for Cox Media

Absolutely Last Minute Holiday Gift Guide 2018: THE ARIZONA EDITION!

I’m back to posting again, and what better way to usher in a holiday post with the return of the “Absolutely Last Minute Gift Guide”! As mentioned in previously, we live in Chandler, which I recently found out is the fourth largest city in Arizona. The picture above is of the Tumbleweed Christmas Tree located in Downtown Chandler, which is a five minute drive from our house. Now that I’m officially outside of California, three of the four suggestions in my gift guide are from The Grand Canyon State!

Sibley’s West

Located in Historic Downtown Chandler, Sibley’s West is a wonderful and truly unique souvenir shop. All of their items are only “From Arizona”, which is their mantra, sourcing artisans and companies based here. If you can’t visit their shop in Chandler, they have gift certificates available on their website and many fantastic gift items to choose from on their online shop.

One of my favorite items I recently purchased as a gift is a Travel Tea Set and loose leaf tea from Tea Royalty. Fortunately, I live right around the corner from Sibley’s, so I’m definitely going back and getting one for myself!

Quench Naturel

I was recently invited to an event at Singh Meadows in Tempe for the launch of Quench Naturel’s Sweet Moringa line. They use only all natural ingredients for their products, and everything is available on their online store. I will be providing a full review soon, but rest assured that all their products would make wonderful gifts!

QMULATIVE

I first heard about and met designer Quinlan of QMULATIVE at this year’s Phoenix Fashion Week (pictured above, being interviewed by my friend Tiffany of Glitz and Glam by Tiff). He was the 2017 Lifestyle Designer of the year at PHXFW, and is known for his AZ Pocket Tees (I’ll have my own soon, and will be sure to post pictures). His designs can either be purchased on his online shop, or in the Tucson area at shops like Why I Love Where I Live and Summit Hut.

Cave Tools

I have been working with Cave Tools for a few years now, having my husband Deon try out several of their wonderful products for cooking his delicious BBQ. Any of their products would make excellent gifts for that BBQ Pit Master in your life, and if you can’t decide on anything in their gift section, they also have gift certificates available.

We recently tried their Stainless Steel Meat Injector, and look out for how we used it for a recent grill session in an upcoming post!

(All pictures by me, except for the AZ Pocket Tee pictures provided by Quinlan of QMULATIVE)

PHXFW 2018 Recaps: Media Day

I’m finally ready to share my pictures from this year’s Phoenix Fashion Week! It was definitely a whirlwind of fashion and fun, which all began with Media Day at Talking Stick Resort. I got the chance to meet some of the designers, models and people who have put together PHXFW in a relaxed atmosphere. Next week, I’ll break down each day, including what I wore!

Breakfast outdoors at Talking Stick Resort

Sivyati (designer Leena Shah on the right), who were featured as Community Designers

Two of the runway models

Koran Fields-Cameron, designer of WVSH (Win Victories. Stay Humble)

MaryElizabeth Stewart, designer of Rockin’ Streetwear

Did you know Koran is from Carlsbad? It was great to see a fellow San Diegan in Arizona!

A quick video capture of Media Day inside Talking Stick Resort

Phoenix Fashion Week 2018 Recaps Will Be Up Soon!

This past week has been the busiest since moving to Arizona, and I’m going through my own pictures as well as bringing you pictures from some of my talented friends to recap my Phoenix Fashion Week experience!

The picture above is from PHXFW’s Instagram page, and I want to thank Executive Director Brian Hill, Sofia Reyes on the Operations Team and all at PHXFW for allowing me to have this wonderful experience and to work with them as one of their Cox Livestream Partners.

I will have coverage and pictures from Media Day and all three days of Phoenix Fashion Week, so stay tuned!

Maybe the Chill That Autumn Brings: Styling With Berkshire Legwear

Fall is here, and I couldn’t be happier! Fall means layers, coats, and legwear. I’m definitely one who loves to wear tights, but I have always stuck with darker hues like blacks or navy blues. These Easy On tights in Candlelight by Berkshire are just the perfect opaque, without that little-girl feel of white tights. They also had a slight shimmer to them, which gave my colorful tunic a bit of daytime glam. I wore this outfit to Media Day at Phoenix Fashion Week on Wednesday, and I’ll be posting all about my adventures next week!

I’m excited try Berkshire’s other Fall/Winter products, which include textured tights and, yes, anklets!

Outfit: Chevron shirt dress/tunic from Forever 21; Navy blue jacket by Twelve by Twelve (a line previously carried by Forever 21, no longer available); Marley Mary Jane shoes in purple by Christian Siriano for Payless Shoes; Zeelol glasses; Furla Candybag; The Easy On Shine On tights in Candlelight c/o Berkshire

FTC Disclosure: I received the product in exchange for a product review. Although I did receive product, the opinions in this post are strictly my own.

(Post title: Lyrics from “She” by Elvis Costello)

Phoenix Fashion Week is THIS WEEK!

Phoenix Fashion Week is this week, and I couldn’t be more excited!

Either join the runway shows live on October 18, 19 and 20th at Talking Stick Resort, or get all of the front row action and livestream the 3-day event at PhoenixFashionWeek.cleeng.com and at the following links:

Livestream Day 1 – http://bit.ly/LiveStreamDay1

Livestream Day 2 – http://bit.ly/LivestreamDay2

Livestream Day 3 – http://bit.ly/LivestreamDay3

In addition to watching the livestreams of the runway shows, be sure to check out my Instagram, Facebook and Twitter accounts for behind the scenes footage of each day’s events. See you on the runway at PHXFW!

Shoe Thrill Celebrates 6 Years in Downtown Chandler!

Living close to Downtown Chandler means local shops and businesses are just a hop, skip and jump away!

Shoe Thrill is known for “Comfort and Style Elevated”, which means they offer a vast array of shoes that are both comfortable and unique. Dansko is a part of their curated selection of shoes, and I can attest to just how great they look and feel because I own a pair myself (post here)!

Here is all of the information on their Saturday soiree:

SHOE THRILL: 6th YEAR ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

Saturday October 6, 2018
10am-6pm

11 W. Boston St. Suite 2
Chandler, AZ 85225

(480) 275-2898

Facebook: Shoe Thrill
Instagram: @shoethrill

They will have refreshments which includes food and local seasonal beer. Along with a free gift with purchase, you can also get a $50 gift card for purchases that day of $200 or more! Plus, there will be great sales, a raffle for free shoes, and a Dansko 2018 trunk show and 2019 spring preview!

Come and shop local with Shoe Thrill this weekend, cheers!

(Photo courtesy of Shoe Thrill)

Phoenix Fashion Week: October 18-20 2018

I am beyond excited to share a new partnership with Phoenix Fashion Week, the Leading Fashion Industry Event in the Southwest! I love their mission of bridging the gap between national & international designers, premier retailers and top fashion media.

Over the next few weeks, I look forward to sharing some of these talented designers with all of you as I join with PHXWF as a Cox Media LiveStream partner. Save the following dates for the LIVESTREAM of Phoenix Fashion Week’s runway shows and behind the scenes: October 18-20, 2018!

PHXFW has created a Fashion TV Docu-Series currently featured on the COX – YUR VIEW CHANNEL in 21 cities nationwide. This Docu-Series features fashion shows, model searches and behind the scenes on how they have built a successful fashion week.

Below is a link to the PHXFW 2018 Emerging Designers, and stay tuned for more posts about PHXFW, leading up to the runway shows at Talking Stick Resort!

PHOENIX FASHION WEEK 2018 Emerging Designers

Transitions To Another Place: We Moved to Arizona!

Life can take you through many changes, and my family has gone through several in the last few months. It’s been awhile since I’ve posted because of those changes, which includes a move to Arizona! Yes, you read that correctly, my family and I have moved to Arizona, Chandler to be exact!

I’ve actually been to Arizona three times in my life, two include trips to Downtown Chandler due to a management training with a company I worked with previously. It’s quite funny because we now live a stone’s throw from the very hotel I stayed at in Historic Downtown Chandler. In fact, my husband and I recently attended a wedding of friends we used to work with in San Diego, and the two people who I attended the training with both asked me if I went back to Murphy’s Law, where we went quite a few times during our stay! During our first week in Chandler at the beginning of August, my husband, son and I had a late dinner there after furniture shopping, and I had the Bangers & Mash again, which was as delicious as I remember!

The reason we are now living in Arizona is because my husband got a fantastic job in Tempe, an opportunity he just couldn’t pass up. Prior to leaving San Diego, my husband and I discussed several places to move, and we settled on Chandler due to its proximity in “The Valley” (which includes Metro Phoenix, Tempe, Mesa and Scottsdale), and also due to affordability. Even with the heat (the highest was 118 degrees when we arrived), you really just can’t beat the cost of living out here in Arizona. A big bonus is that Dominic’s school is walking distance, which makes for easy mornings!

I will admit, I miss San Diego very much. In fact, I’ve already been to San Diego twice since we moved out here (back-to-back weekends). But I am finally getting acclimated to the heat, which I’ve heard has been the hottest in a long while here. Aside from the heat, I’m enjoying getting to know Chandler. It has grown so much since I was last here nearly 10 years ago, and I’m allowing myself to get a little lost here with the confidence that my GPS will always guide me back home.

If you still follow me on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, you’ll see my adventures have pretty much involved food, and a little shopping. I hope to soon include more fashion and events here in Arizona. I’ve got some catch up posts from when I was still in San Diego, but I will be back on schedule with weekly posts. One of our first big concert adventures here in Arizona will be at the Comerica Theatre to see Nine Inch Nails. Although I’m thrilled to be seeing NIN with my husband and son (a first for each of them), I’m so very excited to finally see The Jesus and Mary Chain, a favorite of mine since the 80’s.

Stay tuned for all of our new adventures and thank you again for following along. Cheers!