The Not So "Fun Bun"

This is a DIY Hair Tutorial that's been circulating on Pinterest.com for a while now and it's one of my most commonly pinned pins. I tried it myself, did exactly what the pictures instructed me to do, and it looked terrible. That's what gave me the idea to write reviews of these Hair Tutorials. I've been a hairstylist for 3 years now and I think I can give you a few tips on how to make these looks easier to accomplish on your own. 

First we have a lovely demonstration by my friend Emily Dawson (not a professional hair stylist or model) attempting to recreate the look with out any instruction from me. 

 

Not such a fun bun is it? Maybe it should be called the "dumb bun" (sorry, that was cheesy, couldn't resist). Let me show you a few easy adjustments to make, so you can have an actual "fun bun."

 Here we go...

 Pull when making your starter bun, make sure it's small. Only pull out a little bit. Leaving a lot of hair out. 

Make sure the hair you've left out is laying flat on the BACK of your head. Pull the bun on either side, just a little, to give it this fan shape. 

Push the bun down to your crown with your hand and using HAIR PINS (NOT BOBBY PINS) and pin the bun securely to your head. This should take between 3 and 4 hair pins. 

Split the hair that's left out in two and roll them with your fingers. Wrap them around the bun ONE AT A TIME, securing them with hair pins along the way and spraying them with EXTRA FIRM hair spray.

Here's Emily securing the hair.

Tada!

I hope this was informative! This is the first Hair Tutorial I've written, do if I left anything out or if you have any questions don't hesitate to contact me! You can find me on twitter @ScottieKey or facebook @ facebook.com/ScottiesPaperDolls or just leave a comment below!

BooHoo.com Review

INTRODUCTION. Let out your inner Rock Star girls, this weeks Spotlight Site is BooHoo.com. BooHoo is a United Kingdom based company dedicated to staying on fashions most forward trends while keeping prices at their bottom dollar. BooHoo is relatively new to the game. For a company that has been around for a mere 6 years they offer a pretty large selection of garments.

STYLE. FLASHY! Boohoo carries recreations of high end runway fashion.   Most all the garments at Boohoo are statement pieces; not a place for basics. Their stuff is very cool and very edgy. I asked my best friend, Emily Dawson, (who’s taste is, in my opinion, impeccable), how she would describe the garments at boohoo and she said “I would say the site's style is trendy, flashy, and young… You definitely could style an outfit from BooHoo but, personally, I wouldn't. Everything is so trendy and loud that I would have to tone it down with some other choices.” Also, you need to keep in mind that this company is based in Dublin, Ireland where fashion trends tend to be a bit more over the top than here in The States (The Jersey Shore excluded… what is in the drinking water up there???)

Price. $10-$100 BooHoo stays true to their vow to keep their cost down. They’re prices are very affordable especially considering that their garments are at the early stages of the trend cycle. I ordered a pair of fabulous “treggings” (trousers meet leggings) with leather inserts on the front for only $25. I mean pleather not leather, but they look great. They don’t look cheap at all.

Wear-ability. The first time I found this site, I knew I had found Legging Heaven! They have the biggest selection of leggings I have every seen. I’ve only ordered one pair but I love them. And I certainly plan to order more.

A lot of this stuff is over the top, I think if you’re a preppy girl or really boho/hipster you could find a few items here to add some edge to your wardrobe. So I’d say, they don’t market to everyone but I think everyone could find something they like here. And come on, regardless of our individual styles, we all occasionally attend events where we went to have a little more edge in our look. This is a place you can go with that mindset.

Size&Fit. They do not offer a wide variety of sizes, i.e. plus sizes or talls or petites. They offer straight-forward, basic sizes and, from what I can tell, they run quite small. The leggings I ordered are M/L and they are a bit tight. I’m not the only one who feels they run small. I read several reviews from girls have the same complaint. My advice is to use the size chart and to probably order the next size up from what you would normally wear. Also, DO NOT FORGET this is a UNITED KINGDOM based company thus all of the garments are in UK sizes. DO NOT FOR GET THEY ARE DIFFERENT. I mean their S M L are the same, but the numbers are different. Here’s a GREAT converter chart, it’s actually the easiest I’ve ever seen!

Quality&Construction. Quality Quality Quality! The leggings I bought are beautifully made. The detail is outstanding. I love the tuxedo pockets in the back and they are so well made with strong but soft fabric. Love the textiles. I’ve read a few reviews with claims of “you get what you pay for” implying that because the price of the garments is cheap that the garments themselves are cheap. I’ve only ordered one item and I didn’t have that problem, but I would still be wary.

Shipping&Returns. In regards to shipping I wasn’t, how should I say, impressed? They told me I would receive my item on 9/11 and I received it on 9/13. I mean, it was only two days late, but for two days I was certain my items were lost and I was going to have to figure out something else to write my blog post on this week. I realize the parcel was coming all the way from Dublin and we live in reality and in reality that should take a while. My problem wasn’t with the amount of time the parcel took to arrive, my problem was that boohoo told me the wrong date. I KNOW I KNOW, its and “estimated” arrival date, but most other companies are usually spot on with their arrival date. I just feel like, Boohoo isn’t up to par with their shipping “prediction” skills.

Ok now the Return Policy… drama. I don’t even want to write about it, but I’m going to.

      1. You must send your item back with in 14 days of the dispatch date. WELL CRAP it took nearly 14 days to get to me in the first place! So if you don’t like it, you better decide imminently!

     2. If they happen to decide that the garment is not what they refer to as “saleable” condition they have the right to not refund your money. ???

     3. “For returns made outside the UK or Republic of Ireland, these must be returned at your own cost.” I’m sorry, if your item is faulty, I don’t think I should have to pay to send it back to you.

      4. They DO NOT offer any exchanges.

Bottom Line: All sales are final. They aren’t going to “SAY” all sales are final, but they’re going to make it so impossible for you to return an item that you will just give up.

Recap. Here you go, BooHoo.com offers recreation’s of high end fashion for unbeatable prices. HOWEVER you better be sure,

• Be fully prepared to spend that money (however little it is).
• Always use that size chart girls, be at least 98% sure its going to fit.
• Know you love it and you are going to wear it. Because ladies, excuse my french, but returning that garment is going to be a bitch!

TIP. Got some cute summer dresses you’re not ready to store under the bed yet? Did you hit that end of season clearance rack this September? Don’t worry, It’s easy to work that floral print in to your fall wardrobe. Just pair it with a nice tailored jacket. A cute military inspired jacket or velvet blazer will work great. Make sure you focus on more tailored pieces to put with those sweet sundresses. 

Thanks for reading, I hope this was helpful! 

Let's be friends! Find me on facebook @ facebook.com/ScottiesPaperDolls or on Twitter @ScottieKey

 

Hair Tutorial Introduction

The Fun Bun

We’ve all seen these fun, DIY Hair Tutorials floating around all over the internet. They look so cute and seem like they are so easy! Just 6-8 images of a model doing what seems like easy little steps. Yeah. Have you ever tried one? I am a professional and licensed hair stylist and a lot of these tutorials were difficult even for me.

I’ve decided to help you all out with these tutorials. Each week, I’ll pick a new tutorial, attempt to replicate the steps exactly as they are shown and show you the finished product. If the tutorial is misleading or doesn’t quite come out the way it should, I will demonstrate how to adjust the steps so you can get the look at home. You’re Welcome! <3 So, don’t forget to check back next week for my review of "The Fun Bun!"

  

***UPDATE***

Here's a preview from today's review photo shoot with Emily Dawson as my lovely and talented model! Thanks, Dirty Dawson, for helping me out!

A Look Into Anna's Armoire Review

INTRODUCTION. This week I’m going to discuss something that is fairly new to me and perhaps new to you; Facebook Auctions. This is a grassroots movement by entrepreneurs taking advantage of Facebook as a free marketing medium. My Spotlight Site is Anna’s Armoire. Anna hand picks adorable jewelry and places it for auction on her facebook page. Facebook auctions are not like a typical internet auction, i.e. Ebay. I’m going to explain how they work using Anna’s Armoire as an example.

Anna holds her auctions at 9p.m. ET on Sundays. This is 9 SHARP and she means it… don’t wait until 9:07 like I did because the item you want may be gone. Don’t worry, you don’t have to make on the spot decisions. Preview pictures are posted roughly a week before each auction. On Sundays at 9 SHARP she will begin posting pictures of pieces on her wall and as you see something you’d like to buy, comment “sold” along with your email address. The next morning you will receive an email with a paypal invoice.

I think this is brilliant and frankly, I’m mad I didn’t think of it! I asked Anna how she came up with it and she told me “There had been other jewelry and clothing auction Facebook pages popping up and I thought to myself, 'how fun!' So I started my own: Anna’s Armoire.  I started Anna’s Armoire in late February 2012. It was slow start at first but it really began to take off around May!” -Anna

STYLE.  Anna’s stuff is classic and quite preppy, although she does sneak in the occasional skull bracelet. They carry several different lines, including the sought after Jane Basch Designs. You’ll mostly find items that are mid trend. Stuff that’s definitely current but not necessarily on the forefront of up coming trends. It's all very colorful and eye-catching, the kind of stuff people compliment. My friend Lyndsey Williams, who turned me on to Anna's Armoire had me convinced when she said "Each piece of Anna's jewelry is a statement piece. When you wear it, people notice." I'd have to agree.

PRICE. On average the pieces generally run between $15-$35. The thing that gets pricey are their really cute and ever so popular monogram necklaces by Jane Basch Designs, which can run between $100-$225. While commenting on Anna’s Armoire my friend Jessie Senter told me she loves her necklace “especially for such a low price!” Anna’s Armoire always tries to beat retail prices. This is another benefit of online shopping. Many of these companies do not have physical stores; so do not incur the overhead it cost to run a store. This allows them to offer their products at a lower cost to their customers (which I super appreciate).

SIZE&FIT. The bracelets do run a tad small. I have fairly large wrist for a girl with my frame (5’0 tall) and mine were a little tight, wearable of course, just a tad small. However, Anna will be happy to answer all of your questions before you purchase. So if you have concerns, get out your handy tape measure, measure your wrist, and then shoot Anna an email for the measurements.

QUALITY&CONSTRUCTION. Most of her stuff is costume jewelry (you know, not the kind of jewelry you inherit from your grandmother) and it’s good quality costume jewelry. I have worn my cute gold bangle almost everyday since I bought it and NOT ONE green ring. The gold filled and sterling silver monogrammed necklaces, however, are most certainly real and they have a "real" price tag attached. Anna personally takes her own pictures and doesn’t air brush them or anything. Everything I’ve bought always looked exactly as it did online. I messaged a few of Anna’s facebook fans to get their thoughts on the quality of Anna’s jewelry, Katie Brashear writes “I love the necklace! It is exactly the quality and construction that I thought it would be for what I paid for it, which was around $32.00 I believe. I've worn it only once but received tons of compliments on it. I think she has super cute stuff and great prices!”

SHIPPING&RETURNS. According to Anna “shipping is absolutely free!!” Can’t beat that. They don’t offer express shipping and it usually takes about 5-7 business days. Mine took 7 days, but it felt like 3 weeks because I wanted my bracelet so badly.

Be sure about what you want to buy, because Anna’s Armoire does not accept returns. I feel like for a small, grass roots company this is typical and I’m not bothered by it because they are so up front about their products. Anna happily states “we answer any and all questions you have about the item before buying.”

RECAP. I absolutely recommend Anna’s Armoire. It is a fun way to buy jewelry and Anna is a fun and honest person. That’s a good combo, “fun and honest.” When writing these reviews I usually scour the internet and speak to a lot of individuals looking for other peoples opinions so I can give you a big picture of what a site is like. When reviewing Anna's Armoire, I didn't have to do any hunting at all. I messaged about 5 or 6 different girls and they were all so ready to say nice things about their experience with Anna's Armoire. So, go on my fellow shopaholics, click HERE and check out her upcoming auction! Don't forget to hit the "like" button on her page.

TIP. Peplums. Ok, peplums are in like Flynn, y’all. Some daring ladies are rocking huge peplums and some are taming them down for a little peek-a-peplum. I love them. Peplums are super cute and super not for everyone. If you’re needing some extra packing in the hips department the peplum is great for adding curves but if you’re like me with great “birthing hips” they are not for you. If you know Kim Kardashian, please pass this tip along to her. Thanks.

Put your thumb over her peplum and see how much better she looks! ...SEE!

Do you write a blog? Tweet me about it and I’ll add you to my blog roll!  And don't forget to "like" me on facebook! XoXo Happy Shopping!