Xmas Card

Every time I try to get ready from start to finish meaning: shower, hair, and makeup, it is like a freaking Mexican tropical storm hits my room. Something breaks, I duct tape my carpet, I drop something behind my vanity and my daughter always manages to sh*t her diaper. On top of it all  I'm always on a time crunch because the sun goes down by 3pm so if we wake up at 10, 11ish on a Sunday, then we only have a couple of daylight hours to take pictures (we live in the mountains, in a canyon). This is what happened the day we chose to take Xmas pictures for our 1st holiday card (Im not that ignorant to send out a card that says "merry christmas" assuming everyone celebrates Christmas).

After briefly contemplating going to JC Penney or Sears, or somewhere professional, we just grabbed the tripod and drove down the hill out of the canyon where it stays light till 5. You know, regular civilization. Unfortunately a lot of other people were there doing the same thing. Fortunately we were the best dressed, because you know that matters in life.

I brought heels in Sochi's diaper bag but I decided not to fake the funk. Pulled this silk dress out of my closet. I'd never worn it before. It still had the tag on it $2.40.

My DIY cat shoes are still holding up!

"Your Spanx are showing, stupid."

Precious moment ruined by my car in the middle. I don't have Photoshop or Photoshop skillz.

And now some holiday cheer from my mother, a freestyle performance in the 99 cent store. She is a former Rockette, oh wait, that's Lindsay Loho's mom.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjEeWEBD384

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kvZUv-r10g

Aveeno Johnson & Johnson giveaway/review #ETYY #LLBLOG

Once again, I have some Aveeno products to share with you. Let's go from right to left starting with the positively radiant daily cleansing pads. These are textured so they help exfoliate your skin. I actually keep them in the shower and use it to cleanse my face since they are self foaming, and just rinse my face off afterwards. Great for removing makeup. I like looking at the dirty pad and seeing all the stuff that came off my face. Don't lie, you know you do it too.

Next is the pure renewal sulfate free dry shampoo- This stuff is a life saver. I used it this week when my hair was half greasy, but not ready for a wash yet. My bangs get greasy after a day and this stuff keeps me from looking like I live on skid row. Ok, that was harsh, this stuff keeps me from looking like I've been camping. Is that better? It is white when you spray it on. You have to let it dry a little and comb it through your hair. Especially important for those who have dark hair with gray roots. Definitely not a cute look if you don't comb it through. Leaves your hair smelling fresh too.

Positively radiant daily moisturizer with SPF 30- I'm not the first to tell you to use a moisturizer with an SPF in it and I certainly won't be the last. Even in these winter months. Don't be fooled by overcast, UV rays are no joke. This is something you should use year round. I like that it has a pump, I use one pump a day the moment I wake up, before I put on my makeup. And then I say a little prayer for you.

Positively radiant brightening cleanser- Speaking of pumps. Here is a brightening foam cleanser with a pump. Great to put in your shower or along side the sink so you can remember to wash you face. I'm not a big fan of foaming cleansers, I prefer cream. But this one does the trick.

Positively radiant skin brightening daily scrub- I have reviewed this one before. This one is good because it has those microbeads to exfoliate your skin. It does foam. My mom is a big fan of this stuff, she has been buying it for years. Guess what she's getting for Xmas this year? 

To win these products all you have to do is be a follower of this blog and leave a comment below. Please include your contact info if I don't have it already (email address, or twitter handle is fine).

Extra entry if you tweet about the giveaway to my handle @lasophiaful and use hashtags #LLBLOG and #ETYY

Like their page on Facebook for another entry!  https://www.facebook.com/ETYY

Suerte! Good luck, give_away ends 12/7/2010

Disclaimer: In compliance with FTC guidelines, please be aware that my REVIEW/GIVEAWAY of these Aveeno products, was made possible by the Latina & Latino Lifestyle Bloggers Collective (http://www.llbloggers.com), and sponsored by Johnson & Johnson.

DIY circle skirt

 

I know what you're thinking, I look like an ice skater lost at a renaissance fair. At least that's what my family was thinking. Truth is, I'm a recovering bodycon skirt addict. I decided it was time to break out of this rut and what better way to do it than with my developing social  sewing skillz. I found some really great tutorials on Youtube for easy circle skirt patterns. All I had to do was measure my waist and divide it by 2 x pi. Math? Ugh havent seen you since high school when I took algebra 2 as a SENIOR and was tutored by a SOPHOMORE in my class. College didnt make me take math since I was a humanities major. Got to take computer science instead with all the other dum dums. Awww my golden years....

Lucky for me Halloween was just over so all the clown, uh I mean costume fabrics were on sale. And I purchased 3 yards of this crushed velvet stuff. 3 yards!!! Told you I was bad at math. 

If Gus Gus could do it...

black velvet bodysuit- thrifted

skirt- did you read the title?

over the knee boots- James Cash Penney aka "JCP"

necklace- made by me, in my Etsy shop

The only bad thing besides me messing up the hem by 14 inches here, 18 inches there, was that the fabric stretched a lot once it was cut but my Craigslist hired sewing teacher saved the day by telling me I could just add elastic to the waistband. Originally it was going to be a zipper. I wouldn't call it a work of art but it is wearable and boy did I tear up the town today by wearing it to: Staples, the post office, Target, Sushi, and Food 4 Less. This girl is on fiiiiiiirrrreee. Um not really. 

I am very proud and attracted to this crystal pendant necklace I made. No one wants to buy it though so I wear it. It's in my shop.  

It's a wonder how Weight Watchers has not called me yet for a post partum weight loss sponsorship. I would fit their Mexican vampire demographic so perfectly #theirloss.

Phat Baby

 dress- thrifted

jacket- thrifted

shoes- Reflection

One of my all time fave quotes and I dont even remember where I heard it is, "It's not baby phat, it's phat baby." So now that my st*tch*s were dissolved, it was time to get back to my work out regimen. I thought it would be easy since I stayed active during my pregnancy, walking on the treadmill for 40 min a day and lifting light weights. The day my water broke and I went into labor I had done the treadmill, I was also trying to induce my labor by walking cause I couldnt take being pregnant anymore even though I wasn't due yet. blah blah blah.

"You should be thanking me, I gave you the body of a woman" -My baby daddy.

So baby daddy took me down to the garage where we have our gorilla gym set up. I so did not want to be there. I forgot my headphones so we both had to listen to the Mariah Carey station on Pandora at the loudest volume while I sang along like a clown to "Honey" and "Heartbreaker." Everytime he looked over at me on the elliptical I would lick my lips and wink at him because I felt so sexy. Not. I just wanted to bother him cause I didn't want to be there.

Mom boobs.

It also works as a skirt.

After receiving an evil eye in return for my affection, I changed the station to TLC and dedicated "Unpretty" and "No Scrubs" to him. To which he replied, "Do they have I don't want no pigeons?" Finally my time on the elliptical was up (an elliptical that my mom bought during one of her insomnia spells from the home shopping network. We complained that it sucked and she blamed Nacho for not putting it together right. Then we looked up the reviews online and figured out that no, the machine just sucked. Who buys a piece of exercise equipment without looking it up first? Answer: my mom.) After I got off the elliptical I decided that working out without Sochi in my womb was a piece of cake. That's it, no more games, I was going to go hard. I brought out the jump rope. I don't think you want to know what happened next. It's something your faucet does, except my bladder was doing it. Is this why I was supposed to do Kegels? SNAP, this wasn't going to be easy. I exercised for a week and then fell off because of Halloween and Nacho getting food poisoning (he ate 3 chili cheese dogs, yeah). If he doesn't work out, I don't, plus I was tired cause he was stuck in bed and I was taking care of him and the baby. Now I'm back on the wagon again. This weight will only stay on as long as I let it. I had gained 15lbs the year before I got pregnant so I have a lot of work to do. This will not stop me from blogging and trying to express myself through style. I'm back on the outfit posting wagon.California Love,

LaSophia

A Dog Ate My Blog

Happy Halloween from our Frankenfam

Reasons I havent posted:

1. A dog ate my blog
2. Im checking my sources, but it might be against my religion
3. No one is paying me to do this and as you know, Im all about the benjamins, baby.
4. I've been tied up working on my novel
5. So many episodes of Ancient Aliens, so little time
6. The feds are after me
7. I have no clothes
8. Watering plants takes priority
9. I have a newborn at home
10. My computer has a green monkey virus 

That list was full of half-truths. I'll leave it at that. Anywho, here are our some pics from Halloween. We had way too much fun making our costumes. I stayed up till 4:30am sewing mine. I made it out of some curtain fabric stuff I got at a thrift store for $2. I have been taking private sewing lessons in my home from a lady I found on Craigslist. She hasn't killed me yet so it is going well. It's a lot of fun and I am filled with passion cause I have wanted to sew my entire life. Sochi's costume was a collaborative effort between her dad and I. (Much like her conception except I tried to take all the credit for this one.)  Nacho made her flatforms by buying a pair of baby shoes, inking them black, then layering and gluing foam to the bottom. I made her bolt collar with rolled up felt. He decorated her shirt to say "Frank N Baby" and I tried to sew a collar onto some black cape thing my mom bought at the dollar store. Don't even ask me how I did it cause I still dont know. We took "him" trick or treating. Of course, everyone thought she was a boy. Our costumes were inspired by her hair.

 

Gotta get back to eating her Halloween candy now, uh I mean working off my baby weight.

California love,

Frankenfam

Aveeno Johnson&Johnson Give-away/Review #ETYY #LLBLOG

It's that time of the month again...time to give away and review some great essentials by Johnson & Johnson.

Let's start with the Listerine cool mint- Ok, when it comes to mouth wash, go the distance and do NOT buy it at the dollar store. You will be sorry. Listerine is an essential part of your dental health and something I definitely can't live without. I learned the hard way when I had to pour my dollar store mint wash down the drain. Wasn't even worth a dollar. This one is quality. Get it.

Lubiderm daily moisture- The bottle reminds me of my grandparents like the smell of fresh baked cookies might remind you of yours. My grandma didn't make cookies but she made some mean chicken taquitos. If you have ever shredded chicken or washed dishes you know the need of a good moisturizing lotion. This one is perfect, non greasy. I leave it by my sink and once I've finished washing my hands, I use this. Get it.

Aveeno baby lightly scented wash and shampoo- Lightly scented here is key. A baby's skin is 200x more sensitive than any human beings who is old enough to read this review. So take care of it and don't use harsh products on your bebe. My daughter loves getting her head washed with this stuff, she gets calm as a cucumber. And it's tear free. Even though she's not old enough to produce tears yet. You can trust this on baby skin.

Aveeno baby daily moisture lotion- I use this on my baby over the traditional pink Johnson&Johnson baby lotion because it is fragrance free. I use it after the bath and daily to moisturize her sensitive skin. Keeps her smooth baby skin, baby smooth. Moisturizes for 24 hours. I'd say that is a fact.

To win these products all you have to do is be a follower of this blog and leave a comment below. Please include your contact info if I don't have it already (email address, or twitter handle is fine).

Extra entry if you tweet about the giveaway to my handle @lasophiaful and use hashtags #LLBLOG and #ETYY

Like their page on Facebook for another entry!  https://www.facebook.com/ETYY

Suerte! Good luck, give_away ends 10/20

Disclaimer: In compliance with FTC guidelines, please be aware that my REVIEW/GIVEAWAY of these Aveeno products, was made possible by the Latina & Latino Lifestyle Bloggers Collective (http://www.llbloggers.com), and sponsored by Johnson & Johnson.

New In Shop

After a hot, pregnant, summer it was time to get Maricela back in my attic to model some winter wear. Oh how I love exploiting her beauty and figure for my own personal gain. She does not mind because she is my friend, uh right Maricela? Most of the pics feature her with an open mouth mid-joke or wise crack cause that's just how funny we are IRL. We joked that we should have our baby daddy(s) up in the loft with us to write down all our funny jokes. What I can remember of her jokes I use as selling points; furthermore exploiting her on an intellectual property level. "Let the Hunger Games begin!" -Maricela on wearing blazer below that has already sold BTW. That's how good she is.

 

Sell it girlfriend. Sold.

 

Black and gold cape. 

Why this photo isnt cropped IDK. Leopard jumpsuit.

 70's floral jumpsuit with inverted pleats.

Black and gold sequin dress just in time for the holidays. I wore it for Thanksgiving last year. 

Chinese inspired number.

80's turquoise blazer

Oversized Southwest boyfriend blazer

Saks Fifth Avenue silk jacket

Tribal print hammer pants

 

3 tiered ruffly peplumy number

Handmade Guatemalan jacket

Gorgeous vintage knit cape

Mint condition black and white vertical striped dress (prob my fave)

Neon knit sweater from Mervyns of California (RIP, they closed a few years ago).

 "I wore this to my 6th grade graduation" dress

 

Rhinestone cowgirl romper

Vintage embroidered sweater

I had cut these jeans into shorts but I decided to keep them being as they are a part of my go-to color scheme- black, white, red.

Things took a very grunge turn at the end and we headed outside as we played dress up. Still debating if I should put the Docs in the store, I don't officially know what size they are but she says they fit her and she is an 8.5.

All in a days work, and then multiple days after editing, measuring, and listing. But it's my idea of fun.

LaSophia

Vintage clothing for sale here: www.etsy.com/shop/lasophia

Postpartum Collection

3 weeks have gone by since my baby exited this body. 3 more weeks and I can start exercising again and start trying to make another baby. I'm kidding about the latter of course.

I pulled this spearmint pleated skirt out of my shop to wear to my sisters 40th bday party this weekend. And I will not be putting it back in. It's nice to have a garment other than a dress that fits. Everything is thrifted except for my shoes.

Went thrifting today for the first time in a long time and found some jeans for myself. Shock! Jeans. I just need to style them now. I'm really feeling the wedge sneakers that are out right now. Going to get some Steve Madden ones soon with my birthday money, that is, if they are comfortable....

Project Style #FNO

So it finally came, the day that seemed as far away as my due date, September 6th, the live style off at Victoria Gardens where I was selected as the wild card contestant in a challenge with 4 other girls to put together an outfit with a $200 dollar gift card to the mall in one hour. I chose to use a model, my friend Maricela, as I felt more comfortable dressing her body than mine that just gave birth 2 weeks ago- that and she has really rad hair. Did I mention this is an outdoor mall? And it's summer? And the stores are spread out like going to another land within Disneyland. Good thing I hydrated with a Hot Dog on a Stick lemonade before hand yay yer #foodcourt.

With my model, Maricela before the competition began. Photo credit: Victoria Gardens FB.

Taking off! 

 The set-up

The first piece I found was the skirt at Guess on the clearance rack, still cost $75.00. It was a black sheer pleated maxi skirt with a mini tribal skirt attached underneath. Since it was so basic, black and white, I knew I had to bring some color.

 From left to right- Maricela, Baby mama, Ellen K (host), and a fellow contestant. Photo Credit: Victoria Gardens FB.

 I told her to work it like Selena on the runway. And then the stage would collapse and I would scream, "But those are my children!" Photo credit- Victoria Gardens FB

That's where the neon shoes came in. I have visions of owning a pair of neon bubblegum pumps and had seen many pairs at Macy's. I ended up purchasing a pair from the sales rack by BCBG for $22.00. HARD CORE SCORE.

 Homegirls since our UCR folklorico days. Viva la danza, viva la raza.

For the top, I left it up to Madonna's daughter's line "Material Girl" also at Macy's. A hot pink sleeveless tank with cut out detailing in the back. The basic yet trendy tank allowed me to bring it with accessories which I also got at Macy's. A gold cuff bracelet, gold collar necklace, and some gold earrings 30% off. Hell, at this point I was able to even throw in a purse which was a small black quilted faux leather one with a gold tone chain. Oh how I wished it were Chanel. I still had $13.00 left on the gift card but the look was complete. We went to the dressing room in Macy's and headed back to the stage where we were the first to arrive. Baby daddy was there and taking photos for me. Finally the event began which was hosted by Ellen K from KIISFM 102.7.

 Group photo. Host Ellen K in the middle. The girl with the striped skirt and black jacket won the $1,000 gift card. Lucky girl, lucky girl. She's going to have a good Xmas this year. Photo credit- Victoria Gardens FB.

I'm an emocita pesimista to begin with- translation- emo pessimist so I didn't have high hopes of winning. Not because I dont believe in myself, just because I don't like to be let down. But then Ellen K went to the audience and asked a random lady which look she liked the best and she said mine because it was "classy." Then Ellen asked Sonia Casta~neda, Youtube beauty guru and she said me as well but maybe she was biased because we are both moms. And then they announced the winner, and it was not me. Afterwards people kept coming up to me telling me I should have won which was really nice. Not cause I was hurt, but because I knew they appreciated my work, my art, styling and the fact that they didn't even know me meant it was sincere. This challenge was truly a challenge for me because as those of you who know me know, I don't really shop at the mall too much. I invest in shoes and then my clothes mostly come from thrift stores. I was unmoved by many of the clothes I saw in the stores. But that's all me, not them. In the end, I fell in love with Maricela's complete look which I know a lot of people did as well. She looked so hot. I'm lucky to have her as a friend/willing participant in my styling dreams. Remember, she is also the model I use for my Etsy shop. I pay her in clothes.

 

Baby daddy got a fresh cut for the show. I'll be pregnant again soon. 

 

Dont ask me how we ended up posing our eyes alike. With Izzy aka Isabelsmells, a nice woman who voted for me through out the competition and I didn't even know her in real life until this moment! 

With fellow baby mama, Sonia Casta~neda, Youtube beauty guru and judge. 

If I could style for a living I'd be the happiest girl in the world. Ok woman, cause I'm 28 and pretty sure I was the oldest contestant. If anyone wants to hire me, I'm ready to work. Fashion is my passion. Always has been. In the words of Antoine Dodson, "Thank you! I live, I live."