New Years Eve Party Outfit Inspiration

New Years Eve by fashionandsmiles featuring a snake skin purse

Alice Olivia short gold cocktail dress / Black velvet pumps, $190 / Givenchy snake skin purse / Deborah Lippmann gray nail polish / Open Air 12X12 Maggie Holmes Flea Market Paper by Crate Paper - Two...

Sorry this post is so late! I know its the day before New Year's Eve so you guys probably have your party outfits picked out but now all procrastinators, like yours truly, can unite! I love New Years and well, hopefully, this can inspire us procrastinators! So when I think New Years I think blue, black, and gold. To avoid wearing a lot of jewelry to glamorize a simple dress, I would pick a patterned dress that stands out by itself.To make the ensemble pop I added an elegant royal blue clutch. Lastly a cute low bun works perfectly with a busy dress like this because it allows you to appreciate the dress without your hair covering all the dress's awesomeness!

Outfit aside, New Years Eve is about celebrating a new beginning so make sure you celebrate it! Have fun, be happy! If the past year was a little rough, make the new year to come the best year yet! Embrace it, create goals you want to achieve in 2014! However, as a piece of advice, make sure you make small goals you will be able to achieve so you don't become discouraged. I made this mistake last year which allowed me to only complete half my goals. But hey, now its almost a new year,  so another new start haha!

Sorry for babbling! I hope you enjoyed this post! What are some of your goals for 2014? :) 

Hooray, Blog Makeover!

Sooooooo notice anything different about the blog?!? As given away in the title, my blog has been beautified! I love the new look, and it so me! Its all thanks to an awesome blogger and designer Olivia Foster!

A few days ago I received a sweet email from Olivia saying that she had created a free blog design for me. I previewed the design, and fell in love with it instantly. I wrote back that the design was perfect for me, and tada, within a few hours my blog had undergone a complete transformation! 

Olivia is so sweet and such a talented designer/blogger and I can't thank her enough for personalizing my blog. She replied very quickly to emails, and answered any questions I had, making the whole process very smooth. Also a huge perk was that the whole design was free! 

So if your looking to change up your blog design, I definitely suggest contacting Olivia :)

Email:  itsoliviafoster@gmail.com

Check out her blog:  http://www.itsoliviafoster.blogspot.co.uk/

Ridiculously Simple Christmas Nail Design

I loooooove having nice pretty nails. Problem is, I  seem to lack hand eye coordination. However I still want Christmas nails, so I came up with my own design. This quick nail design is festive and so easy that even I can do it! Also it doesn't require any fancy-schmancy nail tools:)

DIY Christmas Tree Ring Holder!

Being that there are only a couple days until Christmas, I have gone into full blast holiday mode. So a couple days ago, I starting breaking out all the tacky holiday jewelry. Being the DIY and Christmas lover I am,  I thought, how can a make a festive holder to display my jewelry? With some serious thinking and the aid of some delicious hot cocoa, the idea for a Christmas Tree Ring Holder was born! Its super easy to make and adds a whimsical touch to your room! Sooooo, if your ready, lets get started!

Essentials to Survive the Harsh Winter

Winter is a truly magical season but the freezing temperatures can really take a toll on someone. It can affect our skin and our attitude, and for me, winter seems to do this A LOT!  So for anybody presented with the issues that come with sledding season; I present to you a winter survival guide!



1. Let the Good Times Roll Facial Cleanser:  Two words. Sugar cookies. That is literally what this LUSH cleanser smells like. Every time I wash my face with this for some reason I imagine curling up by a fire with fresh baked cookies and watching elf. Its that awesome that it triggers fantasies. It also does not dry my skin which is a huge plus because I am cursed with extremely dry skin. One thing to note though, it that the cleanser has a clay/cream consistency and does not foam up so it is definitely a non-traditional cleanser compared to ones I usually use like Clean & Clear.

2. BEANIES!!!: When I have a bad hair day, which seems to be very often haha, and or don't want my ears to freeze off this is my go to winter accessory. These hats are just so warm and fuzzy they just make me feel so cozy, and I think they look really adorable! I got mine from Forever 21 because theirs have pompoms on top ( I LOVE DEM POMPOMS) and are not too pricey being about $5 during their current sale :)

3. Sally Hansen Gem Crush Nail Polish, Shade: ShowGirl Chic: I am a huge fan of nail polish and nail art. I love the amazing cute nail art designs for winter. Problem is, I am usually very lazy and don't want to spend a good hour on painting my nails. So instead, when I want wintery nails I will put a good few layers of this nail polish to create a snowy effect with all the small blue and silver glitter in the polish!

Holiday Party Outfit

Don't you just love the holidays?! I KNOW I DO!!!! (sorry I am just really excited for Christmas haha) One of the best parts is all the holiday parties!!! You know the ones with twinkling lights, Christmas music, and about 5 pounds of cookies...all of which I seem to be able to eat by myself haha. Other than the cookies I love picking out festive outfits. So I recently went to one of these parties and here is the simple outfit I put together!Links for the items to make this outfit will be listed at the end of the post :)

Im not exactly sure why I put a body mist in this photo..but hey, gotta smell nice right? 

Sweater: I tried to steer myself off the ugly sweater trend for once (don't get me wrong I love ugly sweaters) and instead went with a more sophisticated reindeer patterned black sweater with gold accents. I found it at Forever 21 and it was love at first sight annnnnnndddd it was also only about $23!

Jeggings: Jessica Simpson Kiss Me jeggings are what I picked in terms of pants. I really like these specific jeggings because they are super comfy but still look like jeans. Also I loved the color because I feel like sugar plum is the perfect classic winter shade. If your not into the whole sugar plum thing, I feel like a dark red pair of pants would also work well.

Shoes:Combat Boots!!! Dahhh!! They are a winter staple and go well with any outfit. Gray and brown combat boots would look best in my opinion.

Thanks for reading!!! Leave a comment below on your holiday party outfit ideas!

Links:
Sweater:http://www.forever21.com/Search/SearchResult.aspx?dsNav=Ntk:primary%7creindeer+sweater%7c3%7c,Ny:True,Ro:0,Up:regular&dsDimensionSearch=D:reindeer+sweater,Dxm:AllPartial,Dxp:3&dsCompoundDimensionSearch=D:reindeer+sweater,Dxm:AllPartial,Dxp:3&br=f21&keyword=reindeer+sweater&fromsearch=true
Jeggings(AE):http://www.ae.com/web/browse/product.jsp?productId=0327_8241_193&catId=cat5180042
Combat Boots (Rampage):http://www1.macys.com/shop/product/rampage-jepson-combat-booties?ID=975582&CategoryID=25122#fn=BOOT_HEIGHT%3DMid%26sp%3D1%26spc%3D127%26ruleId%3D78%26slotId%3D5

I am joining Bloglovin!

Its a great website where you can follow all your favorite bloggers and be updated on there posts! Make sure you follow my blog ( i think you would search fashionsmilescupcakes in the search box!)
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AFFORDABLE STOCKING STUFFERS!!! WOOHOO!

*Disclaimer*: All opinions are my own and I am not affiliated with any company.

Alright time for part 2 of the gift series! If you have not already, make sure you see part 1: Awkward Class Secret Santa!  I love the idea of stockings but I feel like they can be particularly hard to find items for due to their size so these are some ideas I came up with for stocking stuffers. Here we go!

sorry i accidentally already took out and eyeliner from the gift set, oops!

1. Makeup: Most girls love it, and its always nice to have more to add to a collection. You can get single items like mascara and eyeliner or opt for a cute gift set.  *gasp* But wait, Danielle, aren't gift sets expensive?! WRONG! Companies like e.l.f. make pretty good products and holiday gift sets for as little as $3 like the eye liner one below which I found at Target. It contained a brightening eyeliner pencil, shimmer eyeliner pencil, and a water proof eyeliner pen. Or another personal favorite of mine is there Little Black Beauty Book for about $6 that has 48 eye shadow shades. I think its perfect for someone just starting to get into makeup! If you like those here is a link to their website: http://www.eyeslipsface.com

2. LIPS!: I guess this could go into makeup, but its special enough I put it in its own category. I think lip products are essential during this time of year because we begin to become cursed with chapped lips. Companies make festive themed ones now so they are impossible to pass up! Companies like Bath and Body Works make delicious holiday themed lip glosses for $8. Though if you are looking for a bit of color, LUSH (one of my favorite brands) made a bright red lip tint called Santa Baby for $8.95. You haven't even heard the best part...IT TASTES LIKE COCA-COLA!

Bath and Body Works:http://www.bathandbodyworks.com

LUSH Santa Baby:http://www.lushusa.com/Santa-Baby/03904,en_US,pd.html#start=2

3. Hands and Nail Products: Winter means dry skin and flu season, so I think hand lotions and sanitizers are essential. Since its the the season of giving I think LUSH Charity Pot Lotions, $5.95 for a small, are perfect because 100% of the retail price is donated to the charity listed on the pot. Its great to know that you are not only getting a nice lotion but that your also helping others! For sanitizers, Bath and Body Works has so many festive choices at 5 for $5. Now that your hands are moisturized and clean throw in some nail polish. I chose China Glaze in a nice winter shade Swing Baby. To top off the manicure add some rings! If you looking for affordable rings I recommend going to Forever 21, where many of their rings are less than $3!

Forever 21: http://www.forever21.com/Product/Main.aspx?br=f21

China Glaze Swing Baby: http://www.amazon.com

Thanks for reading! Comment below if you are thinking of getting some of these stocking stuffers! Oh also if you want me to do a review on any particular product mentioned above leave a comment on that too haha!

The Awkward School Secret Santa Gift

It has happened to all of us. Each year we have that class that decides to do a secret santa. You are all excited until you pick the name of the person you did not even realize was in your class. This happened to me this year with a class set limit of $5 total. So I decided to play it safe, generic and festive. So with the magical combination of Target and a local dollar store I made the gift above happen for 5 dollars. Without further ado, here is how to save yourself from an awkward secret santa:

• Food: Its everybody's best friend. So if your stumped on what to get, just overload your cart with assorted festive foods like cookies, candy canes, chocolate, and lollipops. I found my snowman sugar cookie, lollipop, and chocolate box at my local dollar store (but, obviously, you could find it everywhere).
• Stereotypical Holiday Items: The classics everyone loves like mugs, fuzzy socks, mini Bath and Body Works hand sanitizers, and gloves. You really can not go wrong with these because people can find use for all these items. 
• Festive Party Accessories: You may not be able to get them an ugly christmas sweater, but you can get them the perfect accessory to top off the glorious ugliness of their sweater! These kind of items are just kind of fun to throw in to get into the holiday mood. I chose to go with a christmas tree head band  from Target. Not into headbands? Switch it for a santa or elf hat!

I hope this helps you guys with your secret santas! Are you doing a secret santa this year? Tell me your secret santa gift ideas in the comments below! Thanks for reading! 

HOLIDAY SERIEZZZ!!!!:):0:D

AHHH THE HOLIDAYS! The most wonderful time of the year the time for hot chocolate, warm fires, fluffy snow, cute warm winter clothes! Oops look at me blabbering! This is my first post and since the holidays are quickly approaching (hooray!) I decided to make a series focusing on the holidays! So here is the hopeful line up (in no particular order):

Part 1. Gifts: posts about gifts for everyone on your list from an awkward class secret santa to your closest friends

Part 2.Holiday Styles: Inspiration on holiday attire to put everyone in a festive mood

Part 3.The Deliciousness: yummy recipes and decorating ideas for all the favorite holiday yums

WOOHOO! Get Excited! As you can probably tell I am!

and ps if you have read this far thank you so much! It means a lot that you would take the time to read my post and it would be extra awesome if you could clickidy click click the follow on g+ or subscribe bottom thing?! Thank you!

Sorry last thing I promise. I clearly love the holidays but I really want to know your opinions, so please comment below what your favorite part of the most wonderful time of the year is!