PRADA RED

April 12, 2016luxorlivingandstyle 3 Comments

Stephanie Sjoberg, Prada, red bag, red dress, red lace, Houston blog, blogger in Houston, Luxor Living and Style, Houston MUA, makeup artist, Michael Kors watch, Gabannafang, Urban Decay, Gwen Stefani, lip color, Anastasia dip brow, platinum blonde, gold jewelry, Kendra Scott, necklace, one sleeve top, Mac eyeshadow

Prada Saffiano Vernice Tote, Kendra Scott Necklace, Badgely Mischka earrings, Urban Decay Gwen Stafani lip color in Wonderland

Prada glasses, Prada bag, red bag, Tiffany Co, bracelet,, Stephanie Sjoberg, Prada, red bag, red dress, red lace, Houston blog, blogger in Houston, Luxor Living and Style, Houston MUA, makeup artist, Michael Kors watch, Gabannafang, Urban Decay, Gwen Stefani, lip color, Anastasia dip brow, platinum blonde, gold jewelry,

Prada Sunglasses, Prada Venice Bag, Tiffany & Co bracelet

I look like I take myself so seriously. I really don’t. I have to explain how this post came about and you will see the humor.

I was going to Paris this month. I decided it would be a perfect time to get pictures done with my husband, in front of the Eiffel Tower. After researching, it became evident that I would need a red dress for the supposed photo opportunity, so I set out to have my own dress created. The dress is a wee bit different from my original design idea but I learned a lot! Grace Abbott was the seamstress I worked with to create the gown. I think next time, I will try to have an ultimate black dress made. That dress that makes anyone look good. One can dream.

I wasn’t counting on extreme wind and cold on the day we took time to actually do the photo session. It was so cold and windy that you literally could barely hold your eyes open and when you did, freezing cold tears would fall out of them. A see-thru red lace dress flapping in the wind was not going to work. Fortunately, I brought a back up. It was a 20 year old black dress that I keep around and let clients use for photo sessions. But that’s another story and I’ll post the photos from that later….here we have the dress that I didn’t wear in Paris. Instead, I wore her to our anniversary dinner here in Houston.

I wanted to share it on the blog, so here we are! I am not sure what my new obsession is with red…I’ve always been a pink person. I guess I’ve decided that red is a classic, fun, forever color pop. I recently invested in red shoes…which is hard to do! It’s very hard to find a red shoe that is acceptable. Red sneaker wedges, red stiletto nails, 5 million tubes of red lip stick and of course…this red Prada bag which I will use until I’m dead to justify the cost! I was lucky enough to purchase her in Paris as a souvenir. At least this is what I tell myself to help rationalize.

The red Gianni Bini heels are adorable! The name is Valentina, and I’m really hoping to wear them here and there, they are super comfortable.

All of my home revamps are finally finished so a lot of my spare time will be used for MUA jobs on the side of my Day Job working for Johnny Was, but I will still make time for my blog! Why? I have worked in fashion and makeup for years. I still do freelance work here and there. I love photography. Art. I have opinions. Strong ones from what I’m told. Blogging is a creative outlet so that I don’t feel compressed by having to blend in with society and grind. My blog is a platform for what I am doing in life and what I aspire to do more of.

-SDS

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SIX SHOTS: MARCH 2016

April 10, 2016luxorlivingandstyle 1 Comment

1. BEAUTY ROOM

Click the photo above to check out my new Beauty Room! I had a chandelier put in the room, and I absolutely love this room now! Actually, we all do. It’s a cozy gathering place which was not what I’d intended. I’m still working on organizing some drawers and still getting rid of things, but it’s a great place to run my empire! (By empire, I actually mean my life.)

2. PAULIE’S

I rarely take a proper lunch break when I’m at work. On this one rare day, I stopped in for a cappacino and cookie break at Paulie’s in Houston. It was the most amazing coffee in Houston. Ever. Just saying. The adult food looks amazing as well, however the last four times I’ve been in, I’ve only been buying cookies as gifts or for events at work.

3. EASTER EGGS

I was so thrilled to find a bird’s nest in my back yard. The thrill was ruined just two days later, when my dogs had to chase off a cat that was in the middle of stealing one of the eggs from the nest. Nature can be so cruel. I carefully picked up the damaged egg, patched it and attempted to incubate it for a week before I was sure it was ruined and lifeless. I had incubated tons of eggs in the past, but nothing so small and fragile as Dove eggs. Doves are known as sloppy nest makers and honestly it was in a terrible location. Obviously the top of a fence is where any smart cat would sit to torture the dogs below. But the beauty and joy I felt when I first discovered the nest leaves me hopeful that other birds in the area will be more successful in the future here. I would love to be able to photograph brand new life!

4. BIRD HOME AVENUE

Every thing isn’t about makeup and fashion to me…I love gardening and anything to do with nature as well. It’s a bit old lady I suppose, but I adore bird houses and pick up a few every year to tuck here and there throughout the yard in hopes that it draws more birds my way! Nothing is better than hearing chirps in the morning!

5. GALVESTON DAY TRIP

While Galveston Beach is not exactly The Bahamas, it’s still a beach. It’s nice to go sit and hear the waves crash in, feel the wind blow and of course…take the dogs. I do this at least once a year. It was great because it wasn’t too hot yet. At one point, I suddenly look down, and see that Jazzy has scribbled her name in the sand! Amazing girl! Blanca and Bella were not crazy about having other people on the beach, as you can see in their resting bitch face shot. They were also not thrilled with the concept of sand in their toes, so mainly they sat in the lawn chair and observed the passers by.

6. EASTER

Easter

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

This article is about the Christian and cultural festival. For other uses, seeEaster,^{[nb 1]} also called Pascha^{[nb 2]} or Resurrection Sunday,^{[nb 3]} is a festival and holiday celebrating theresurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, described in the New Testament as having occurred on the third day of his burial after his crucifixion by Romans at Calvary c. 30 AD.^[5]^[6] It is the culmination of the Passion of Christ, preceded by Lent (or Great Lent), a forty-day period of fasting, prayer, and penance.

The week before Easter is called Holy Week, and it contains the days of the Easter Triduum, including Maundy Thursday, commemorating the Maundy and Last Supper,^[7]^[8] as well as Good Friday, commemorating thecrucifixion and death of Jesus.^[9] In western Christianity, Eastertide, the Easter Season, begins on Easter Sunday and lasts seven weeks, ending with the coming of the fiftieth day, Pentecost Sunday. In Orthodoxy, the season of Pascha begins on Pascha and ends with the coming of the fortieth day, the Feast of the Ascension.

Easter and the holidays that are related to it are moveable feasts which do not fall on a fixed date in the Gregorianor Julian calendars which follow only the cycle of the sun; rather, its date is determined on a lunisolar calendarsimilar to the Hebrew calendar. The First Council of Nicaea (325) established two rules, independence of the Jewish calendar and worldwide uniformity, which were the only rules for Easter explicitly laid down by the council. No details for the computation were specified; these were worked out in practice, a process that took centuries and generated a number of controversies. It has come to be the first Sunday after the ecclesiastical full moon that occurs on or soonest after 21 March,^[10] but calculations vary in East and West.

Easter is linked to the Jewish Passover by much of its symbolism, as well as by its position in the calendar. In many languages, the words for “Easter” and “Passover” are identical or very similar.^[11] Easter customs vary across theChristian world, and include sunrise services, exclaiming the Paschal greeting, clipping the church,^[12] and decorating Easter eggs, a symbol of the empty tomb.^[13]^[14]^[15] The Easter lily, a symbol of the resurrection,^[16]^[17]traditionally decorates the chancel area of churches on this day and for the rest of Eastertide.^[18] Additional customs that have become associated with Easter and are observed by both Christians and some non-Christians include egg hunting, the Easter Bunny, and Easter parades.^[19]^[20]^[21] There are also various traditional Easter foodsthat vary regionally.

-SDS

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REAL

February 15, 2016luxorlivingandstyle 3 Comments

-SDS

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JOHNNY GIRL

January 6, 2016luxorlivingandstyle 4 Comments

Stephanie Sjoberg, Houston Top blogs, bloggers in Houston, white blonde, retro, boho fashion, Johnny Was Clothing, Kendra Scott necklace, gucci glasses, Top Houston, fashion blogger, stylist, Houston MUA

Johnny Was Scarf, Johnny Was dress, Kendra Scott pendant, Tiffany bracelet, Mac lip color in Sparks of Romance

Johnny Was ring, Kendra Scott necklace

-SDS

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TOP 12 SHOTS OF THE YEAR: 2015

January 1, 2016luxorlivingandstyle 3 Comments

1. VAMP

This is just a shot from one of the top rated posts of the year. See more here.

2. PINK

Don’t try to argue with me about Gun Control. Have someone walk into your home in the middle of the night, find yourself with no way to protect your family…and then tell me that gun ownership for responsible, decent people is a bad thing…well, if you live through the experience to have a conversation after.

We have other guns, however I’d wanted something old school, simple and straight forward. I love this gun. Yes, and it’s pink! For families with small children in the house, extra caution would be prudent but my feeling is that if the average idiot can have a gun to help them rob, rape and kill…then surely I can, too. When guns are taken away from all the criminals, let me know…then we can revisit the topic. Until then, carry on.

3. BARBIE

I’d seen all kinds of crazy Barbie makeup videos, and totally thought it would be a blast to try! Videos are a lot more work than one would initially think. It’s actually super fun, but time consuming.

4. REBEL

This was the easiest, 5 minute fashion post ever. This shot got more hits than anything else, so I had to add it to the list. When people ask for their photo to be taken, they need to understand that it’s about angles, lighting and makeup. Yes, makeup. When people want their photo with no makeup, they wonder why they don’t look fabulous like they do in their mind. It’s makeup. Then lights, camera, action! The best is when people just let me do whatever I want to them.

5. #NORDYGIRL

I used to work in fragrance. I still love fragrance more than anything! Scent is power and power is good…that’s my motto! I took this photo for work of a bottle I’d had etched with #nordygirl on it! Love the shot!

6. DAVID YURMAN COUTURE

I’d picked up this ring from the jeweler and it was fabulously new and clean again! It’s a lavender amethyst from David Yurman Couture and I love her. I decided to try and photograph her while she was sparkly!

7. ESHAKTI

I was recently thrilled to get the opportunity to partner with Eshakti.com. This is an online fashion house that enables each woman to order her selections, and submit her order for a custom fit and design! They have pants and tops as well as dresses.

In my case, I measured myself and submitted my less-than-perfect measurements along with my dress preferences. You can choose sleeve type, length of dress, etc as well as them using your personal measurements.

I decided on this fabulous jail house striped number because it’s a different look for me, and I knew that although for work, I have to have sleeves, I knew throwing a jacket on top during the workday would help me to get more use out of my new dress.

I wore this and got numerous compliments from friends and strangers on the bold design. This dress has pockets and flares a bit for a fun, retro look and seriously, since I don’t have hips anyway, it made me look more curvy which isn’t a bad thing! I paired it with a fun, glass lollipop necklace to complete my fun summer look, and of course Michael Kors shoes and a pink bag. Click the photo above to see the entire post.

8. SHALIMAR FOR THE APOCALYPSE

I have always loved Guerlain perfumes. My mom would buy them for me as gifts from about 4th grade and up. A much younger friend was making fun of an Instagram post in which there was a bottle of Shalimar in the background. Of course, I had wanted to show her that not only did I have a bottle of old school, high class Shalimar… but I also had enough to last me through an Apocalypse. ( And by “Apocalypse” of course I mean the pending step forward of the Anti-Christ, the fall of the world economy and the months long outage of our electrical grid, as we all have to scrounge for food and safety for months or years.) But hey, it will all be ok, because I have my Shalimar. And tons of Ramen Soup packages.

9. STREET GLAM

10. RICK SPRINGFIELD

I had nothing to do one Tuesday night. My husband called and had to work late, but suggested I go to the Rick Springfield and Loverboy concert for fun. Hmmmm….for fun I went online and discovered that if you only need one ticket, often you can get really great seats! After purchasing a ticket in the 5th row, I rented an Uber and actually went to this concert. Alone. I had a really great time! I am not much of a concert person so it took all I had to make myself go. People couldn’t believe that I went alone, strangers asked who I was with and friends couldn’t believe I went alone. I am a “grown damn woman and I will do what I want” as one of my old friends always says. Anyway, I took this shot with my Rebel and made it home by 10:30.

11. SURPRISE KISS

So this is a bit dirty. My husband was taking a few shots and of course the dogs get around me so we decide to scoop them up and try to take a nice photo. In attempting to kiss poor Bella’s snout as I’m juggling a super pudgy Jazzy…Bella surprises me with her long, gooey tongue and she literally jammed it into my mouth. Ugh. Disgusting, but she meant well. Jazzy only is worried about whether or not food will be involved somehow.

12. JOHNNY WAS

I began working for Johnny Was Clothing this year and have totally fallen in love with the lines they create! This photo was from the first post I’ve done featuring one of their dresses that I love! Click the photo for more.

-SDS

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