Fall At Your Feet!

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Talk about wacky weather! Last week here in Cali the weather reached temperatures as high as 100 degrees and this weekend the weather dropped to about 68 degrees.  One day I'm wearing sandals and flip flops, and the next I'm rocking my boots!  But wait...last night the weather man said it's gonna start heating back up again.  This Cali weather is sooo unpredictable.  So, now that fall is quickly approching, it's time to kick off the season and check out some smart transitional shoe investments. Whether it's a gotta-get-it gray bootie, or a pair of perfect pumps, this seasons trends offer everything a girl needs to elevate her fall shoe game at great prices that are affordable for everone!  When purchasing shoes for less, there are a cople of key tips that you should know.  Check out this great post over at Rouse + Adore under City Guide: LA Fashion District Finds Available Online that will help when buying shoes for less.

Bamboo Yoda / Strappy Ankle Boot

$27.90

Wild Diva Akemi / Cuffed Bootie

$25.90

Paprika Razi-S Round Toe Knee High Boot

$29.90

Wild Diva Tosca-01A Riding Knee High Boot

$27.90

Nicole / Round Toe Pump

$21.20

Bamboo Office / Suede Stiletto Pump

$19.30

Shoes available at Urban Original

In Style shoe trends to look out for this Fall

Biker Boots

How To Rock These don't need to be black, as long as they have buckles or other hardware to project a tough attitude.  Try them in place of flat riding versions with leggins or a short full skirt and tights

Pointy-Toe Heels

How To Rock Compliment the sleek, sophisticated style with tailored seperates, such as cropped pants, wide leg trousers, or a pencil skirt. 

Bright Suedes

How To Rock Select a bright suede to perk up those neutral office basics and add black or grey tights to instantly create a great Fall look.

Fringe and Tassel

How To Rock High heeled and ballet flat options put a feminine spin on the men's classic.  Play this shoe up by combining it with a floral dress and a cardi or skinny cords/jeans and a chunky sweater.

Sunday Morning Blues!

Sunday morning I decided to make blueberry banana waffles and a smile instantly appeared across my face (:  These waffles were absolutely delicious and are healthy believe it or not (lol).   I ran across this Oat Bran Waffle recipe over at Food.Com and I was pleased to find that I had all the ingrdients and didn't have to make a trip to the store.  I'm slowly beggining to change my eating habits and attempting to incorporate more veggies and fresh fruit into my daily in-take.  I've been eating out way to much lately and the madness has got to come to an end!!  (lol)  By the way...I didn't use any syrup and the waffles were bomb!  What a great way to start my Sunday morning right?

• 3/4 cup oat bran
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups skim milk
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 egg yolk, beaten
• 2 egg whites

Combine the oat bran, whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour baking powder and salt.

Combine the milk, oil, and egg yolk; add to the dry ingredients, stirring just until moistened.

Beat egg whites at high speed with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form; gently fold into the batter.

Coat a waffle iron with cooking spray, and allow waffle iron to preheat. Spoon 1 1/3 cups batter onto hot waffle iron, spreading batter to edges. Bake until lightly browned. Repeat with remaining batter.

Serve immediately with desired toppings

Who Dat!

As the first artist signed to Jay-Z’s Roc Nation label, North Carolina native J. Cole is a BEAST!   Similar in style and appearance to rap's newest sensation Drake, J. Cole has a un-deniable gift.  Be on the look out for this dude, he's definitely the next rapper/producer to blow up!  Who Dat Who Dat!
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What's Cooking - German Chocolate Brownies

TGIF Divas!  Here's  a super tastey treat that is sure to become and instant hit!  Take a brownie that’s already delicious on it’s own without anything else, then you add brown sugar, cream cheese, coconut and pecans and that perfectly delicious brownie is now transformed into a German Chocolate Brownie!  These are ridiculously easy to make, but BEWARE!! Don't make them "fudgy" or this recipe will NOT work.

German Chocolate Brownies

• 1 pkg brownie mix (19 – 20 ounce size)
• ¼ cup (1/2 stick) butter, cut into smaller pieces
• 4 oz (half of an 8 oz pkg) cream cheese
• ½ cup packed brown sugar
• 1 cup flaked coconut
• 1 cup pecans, coarsely chopped

Oven to 350. Prepare brownie mix as directed on package for cake like brownies. Pour batter into greased 9x13 inch pan.

Place butter, and cream cheese in small saucepan and cook on medium heat until cream cheese is completely melted. Don’t worry if it looks a bit curdled, it will come together when you add in the remaining ingredients. Stir in the brown sugar and take the mixture off the heat. Add the coconut and pecans and mix well. Mixture will be thick. Drop spoonfuls of the mixture all over the top of brownie batter.

Bake 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes clean. Cool before devouring.

Herbal Remedies for Beautiful Skin

Skin care is a part of our everyday life and facial masks can help us with that. Let's face it, our skin shows signs of aging first. Aging is individual for everyone and depends on many factors such as genetics, lifestyle, general health and work conditions, and climate. All of those factors take their toll on our skin.

Home-made masks for the face are good because it takes just minutes to prepare them, they are cheap and they give wonderful results. Facial masks should be used regularly, at least once a week, for the best results.

Some people choose just few skin care products and stick to them, some people like trying new and different ones. It does not matter as long as it makes you happy.  However, remember that some ingredients may cause allergic reactions. Always do a skin test before using any new beauty product.

Beauty Tip #1

Here's a great beauty tip courtesy of  Mop Top Maven that I've been using and I can honestly say that I can see a difference in my skin, especially with my pores and I can tell my skin is a little brighter.  Mix a tablespoon of honey with 2 teaspoon of lemon juice.  Apply a thin layer on skin, leave on for 30 minutes, then rinse with cool water.   This will help with facial discoloration and it's a quick way to tighten pores and fade blemishes!  Honey and lemon juice also fades age spots and brightens skin tone.

Beauty Tip #2

My second beauty tip is using honey mixed with a mashed avocado to retain moisture in my skin and create a nourishing and moisturizing mask.  I found that my skin became a little dry after using the lemon and honey mask and this helps the skin hold moisture and keeps my face soft and supple.  Avacados are rich with natural oils and are great for the skin.

Honey which is the key ingredient in both of these great beauty tips is a very versatile natural beauty product that is full of nutrients, antioxidants and other anti-aging, skin clarifying and moisturizing ingredients that makes it a must-have.  2 great beauty tips worth trying out!!

We Love Colors!

A major trend for fall are tights that can carry over your open toed shoes from the summer by pairing them with a pair of colored opaque tights. When the cooler weather hits, warm up a dress or skirt with tights and boots. Tights have become very popular because they offer several benefits. (especially for us Full-Figured Divas) They can enhance the legs, make them better sculpted and create a very sexy yet classic look.  I ran across this great website We Love Colors that offers over 51 colors to chose from, and they offer plus sizes from 1x to 4x.  You will definitely find the perfect colored tights, fishnets or other hosiery items to go with any outfit .

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On this day in 2001, the music world lost one of its true visionaries when Aaliyah, who was only 22 years old at the time, died in a plane crash along with eight other passengers after filming her music video "Rock The Boat" in the Bahamas, which just so happens to be my favorite video of hers. Her tragic passing came just as she was releasing her best album in my opinion entitled "Aaliyah", which had come out only a month prior to hear death.  Aaliyah's passing was tragic, and her absence still stings me as well as many others, but her songs and videos will live on forever.