Show Off Your Pearly Whites without Expensive Bleaching

Everyone wants pearly white teeth, right? I know I do! But let me tell you, I will never ever spend crazy amounts of money to have my teeth professionally bleached again. One horrible experience was quite enough! So for those of you who want gorgeous white teeth without breaking the bank, I have some tips and tricks for you!

I had a lot of dental work done a few years ago and part of the process included professionally bleaching my teeth. Through that excruciatingly painful 45 minutes I learned I have sensitive teeth, which rules out any professional bleaching in the future. So if you have sensitive teeth like I do, I recommend taking this route to a whiter, brighter smile.

One important step to a shining smile is flossing! I know, I know... most people don't have time to floss. But I promise you if you take those couple minutes, even just once a night, your teeth with look cleaner and brighter. Another tip to avoid staining is to drink your coffee or soda through a straw. I love my coffee in the morning and I almost always drink it out of a straw! It really helps.

Thanks to Pinterest, I found a great method for at-home teeth whitening. Mix a little bit of toothpaste, a teaspoon of baking soda, a teaspoon of hydrogen peroxide, and half a teaspoon of water. Brush onto your teeth for 2 minutes. Use this DIY once a week until your smile is blindingly beautiful!

Get Lana Del Rey's Rolling Stone Cover Look!

If you are like me, you are kind of in love with Lana Del Rey. A while back I made a post on a Lana inspired makeup tutorial. I always love her retroesque makeup and when I saw the new issue of Rolling Stone, I knew this was one of her looks that would be perfect to do a tutorial on.

As always, you have to get your face looking flawless like Lana's. My go-to products are: Revlon ColorStay Satin Finish foundation in Natural Beige, Maybelline Age Rewind under eye concealer, Maybelline FitMe concealer, Rimmel Stay Matte powder in Translucent, and Revlon Nearly Naked powder in Medium to contour and add a little definition.

Now onto the fun part... the eyes and lips! Start by applying an eyeshadow primer all over your lids. I love the Urban Decay Primer Potion. Take the Wet N Wild trio in Silent Treatment and apply the lid color all over your lids. Don't blend up too far. Apply the crease color from the same trio lightly onto your lower lash line. Take Stila's black liquid eyeliner and apply to your top lash line. Start off with a thin line at your inner corner and make it thicker as you go towards the outer corner. Create a slight Lana signature... the winged cat eye. Apply Revlon's Matte Balm Stain in Standout to your lips. Slightly overdraw your lips if you want to recreate Lana's pout.

To complete Lana's look pop on some baby blue nail polish. One of my favorites is OPI's What's with the Cattitude?

And there you have it! This is a super simple makeup look that would be great for school or work. It's clean but adds a little drama with the bold lips. I hope you love it as much as I do!

Courtney Bingham-Sixx Inspired Office Style

No big surprise here... Another outfit inspired by my fashion inspiration, Courtney Bingham-Sixx. When I saw this post on her instagram I died a little on the inside. This outfit is the perfect mix of fun and flirty with a little 80's thrown in. This time, I didn't recreate the look exactly how she wore it. Instead, I took her fab outfit and turned it into something I could wear to work.

I was already channeling my inner Courtney because I had recently purchased a hot pink pencil skirt from H&M and fallen in love with it. I just never thought to pair it with a fun leopard print top. Usually, you can find a great, inexpensive leopard top from Forever 21 but I have not been impressed with their selection lately. Instead, I went for the very popular Express Portofino shirt in the leopard print. It is the perfect mix of professional and edgy, which is needed for this look. And as fun as her  hot pink, patent pumps are, I opted for a more practical shoe. I went with my personal favorite black, patent pump by Jessica Simpson. These heels are currently a clearance item on DSW's website so grab a pair or two. It's a steal! I accessorized with my gold Michael Kors watch, which I highly recommend you check out at a local MK store near you. I topped it all of with a fresh St. Tropez self-tan and Revlon's Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Lovesick.

Visit these links to add a little bit of fun to your office attire: skirt, portofino shirt, and pumps.

Keep Your Hair Feeling Fresh with Batiste

As I am sure you know, it is not a good idea to wash your hair every day. Essentially, you are washing away all of your hair's natural oils. Now I know some of you are thinking... that's the point! Well, those natural oils are actually really good for your hair. I used to be one of those people who wash their hair nightly, however, thanks to a fabulous dry shampoo I came across, I no longer have to.

Let me introduce you to one of my holy grail products... Batiste Dry Shampoo. I love, love, love this stuff! I personally like the wild, leopard can's scent the best, but there are so many options to choose from. All you do is spray around your roots and rub in. Any greasy feeling will instantly be gone. It's like magic! And you won't be left with any residue feeling like some dry shampoos. On top of all of those pros, major plus to this product is the volume it give your hair. Love it!

I cannot say enough good things about Batiste. I highly recommend you try it.

Fabulous Swimwear by Susan Holmes McKagan

I love Susan Holmes McKagan's swimwear line! It is too die for! If you don't know who Susan is, let me fill you in. She is a supermodel and the rock star wife to Guns N Roses original bassist, Duff McKagan. I love her bikinis almost as much as I love her. I wanted to put a little spotlight on her line, in case you have never heard of it. Some of the bikinis are a little pricey but there are also some steals! She has a sale section of fabulous bikinis for about $50 for the top and bottom. That's a better price than most Victoria's Secret bikinis! I already have two of her suits. She also offers cute coverups in her shop.

The main reason I wanted to rave about this swimwear line now is because she posted a discount code on her instagram the other night. You can get 30% off anything by entering "Summer01" at check out! Yes, that includes those great sale items! Check it out here!

If you are in the market for a new bikini, I highly recommend this line. I might even have to add another to my collection!

Motley Crue Final Tour Fashion Inspiration!

This summer Motley Crue is hitting the road for their Final Tour. I am a huge Crue fan and knew I had to go to as many shows as possible once it was announced. Needless to say, I will be going to many shows. Seven total! Since many of these shows are during the hot, summer months, I knew I needed to add some pieces to my wardrobe that would be perfect for these outdoor venues. I put together a little inspiration set on Polyvore of some of the things I will be rocking to the shows.

The first mission I went on was finding cute shorts. My two favorite stores to get affordable shorts are American Eagle and Hollister. They have a ton of options and right now they are having great sales! While at Hollister, I also picked up a flowy white tee that knots in the front. These destroyed high rise shorts and burn out tee will be perfect paired with some hot motorcycle boots.

I'm also loving crop tops! They will look great paired with high rise shorts or a skater skirt. I fell in love with this floral crop top from Forever 21. And the price is amazing! Last but not least in the top department... a Motley Crue tour tank! I love this because it will look great with leather leggings and the whole back is lace!

I am always wearing some sort of motorcycle boots to concerts. Yes, even in the summer. They are comfortable while standing on your feet for hours upon hours and they look killer! I found a great pair of Steve Madden boots on heels.com. I will be taking this crossbody bag from Forever 21 to all the shows so I can keep my personal items close.

Now for makeup. I'm sure I will be changing up my look each night but there are two staples that are a must for outdoor concerts. Stila liquid liner and the Revlon Balm Stain in Honey are great because you don't have to worry about running or fading!

If you get a chance, I highly recommend checking out Motley Crue on their Final Tour this summer!

Love Affair with Jouer Cosmetics

Today I want to introduce you to one of my favorite makeup brands (at least for eye makeup) that I feel isn't too well known. It's Jouer Cosmetics and it's fabulous! I recently discovered this brand thanks to Courtney Bingham-Sixx. When she got married, Entertainment Tonight aired a couple features on the wedding and one talked with her makeup artist, Troy Jensen, about her wedding day look. She looked gorgeous and I had to recreate the look. On Troy's Facebook page, he mentioned using Jouer Cosmetics so I instantly went on the hunt for this brand. I picked up a couple eye shadows and an eye definer pencil, which have all become my favorites! This brand is high end but I promise it won't break the bank like some other luxury brand cosmetics.

Let me start by talking about these velvety eye shadows. They run you $20 a shadow but they will last you forever! All you need is to put a little on your brush and it will cover your whole lid. No fall out and no need to layer on the shadow to get the pigmentation you want. It has great pigmentation and blends out so easily. One of my favorite things about these shadows is that they do not crease throughout the day! That's not a cute look on anyone. There are a ton of amazing colors to choose from and... I have a little tip for you. Jouer Cosmetics are also offered at Nordstrom. Jouer's website and Nordstrom's website have different eyeshadow colors to pick from. There are so many options!

Another one of my favorites is the eye definer pencil. This product has quickly become my every day staple! Now, if you are looking for a dark, opaque black liner, this is not for you! This product is a soft black, almost smokey color. It adds definition to the eye and makes lashes look thicker. You can tell you have liner on but it is not as harsh as liquid or gel liner. It's perfect for day time looks!

I have not tried any of Jouer's other products yet, but I wanted to introduce you to their shadows and definer pencil. It's a great brand and deserves more recognition than it gets.