The Makeup Show NYC 2016 Recap

Sleep? What is that? Yeah, it was pretty much non-existent while the MakeUp Show was going on. As you watched on my social media channels, the event covered 3 days of makeup education, seminars,  hands-on workshops, press previews, networking and shopping til' you dropped! As an ambassador to the  Makeup Show, I was able to supervisor a lot of the seminars, assist some of the greatest makeup artists in the industry - James Vincent, Danessa Myricks, Orlando Santiago, Valerie Saint Amand etc. - and of course, get some exclusive behind the scenes for you. Day 1 - Workshops & Press Preview

Day 1 took place on Saturday, April 30. Today was a day that was full of education because I was assisting James Vincent and Orlando Santiago. Afterwards, I attended the press preview and was stunned by all of the new and upcoming brands coming to the show. You can catch up on all of the details on Day 1 and the press preview here.

Day 2 - Seminar & Workshops

Day 2 took place on Sunday, May 1. Today was an insane day filled with makeup enthusiasts and make up artists that came to network, educate themselves and replenish their kits from the best in the business.

Day 3 - Seminar & Workshops (cont)

Day 3 took place on Monday, May 2. If you ever have a choice between attending the event on Sunday or Monday, please do yourself a favor and attend it on Monday. It was definitely less crowded and you will have more of an opportunity to meet and engage with senior artists. Do you know Reggie Wells? Oprah Winfrey's makeup artist? Yeah, imagine supervising an Art of Brows seminar with Eugenia Weston from Senna Cosmetics and him nonchalantly coming up to you to talk about the importance of eyebrows. It's a conversation that I will never forget and you better believe that I purchased a new eyebrow shaping kit on the spot!

Shoedazzle/JustFab Brand Ambassador 2015 Media Event

What do you do when the Shoedazzle and JustFab Press and Social team come out to New York? Why, you party in pink of course!

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Here's To a Happy New Year - 2015!

Normally, I try to avoid doing this when a new year rolls around but I figured this year would be the one and only exception.

For the past few years, I've been going through this transition with myself physically, emotionally, spiritually, financially (have I used every -ly word that I can to describe this change?). What I'm trying to say is that it took me a long time to find myself and basically what really made me happy as a person. Just me. Not anybody else. Not my boyfriend, not my parents, not my family, not my friends, not my boss. Just me.

While I'm sure I haven't fully figured that out 100% yet and I'm still trying to find a balance for myself in the real world, I am excited about the progress that I've made so far and everything that I have planned for myself, my career and for you all!

So with that said, here's looking at 2015!

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Don't Forget To #Shoefie For A Cause Today!

I've got my blue suede shoes on for Breast Cancer today! Just a quick reminder to post a picture of your favorite blue shoes and Nine West will make a donation to Fashion targets Breast Cancer! Don't forget to tag me also so that you can enter to be one of 2 winners for a $25 Designer Shoe Warehouse giftcard at the end of the month! #9WFTBC and #FTBCxCCC

For the 5^th year in a row, Nine West joins forces with Fashion Targets Breast Cancer (FTBC) to raise awareness and funds for breast cancer. During the week of October 15 – October 21, with each purchase in-store at retail, outlet or online of $125 or more, Nine West will donate $25 to FTBC. As a thank you to customers for their purchase and donation, they will receive a Nine West/FTBC branded pouch. Additionally, the brand will be accepting donations during the entire month of October in support of breast cancer awareness. Exclusive this year, Nine West has designed a limited edition Nine West/FTBC pump that will be available in NYC retail stores only and on Ninewest.com. Lastly, in an effort to engage the community, Nine West has created a social media campaign tied to the cause. For every photo upload made by a celebrity, blogger, editor or customer wearing a blue shoe using hashtag #9WFTBC and tagging @NineWest during the month of October, the brand will make a donation to FTBC.

Now, here is where we all make this #shoefie campaign the best that it can be. During the month of October, I’m challenging you all to post as many pictures as you can of you wearing a blue shoe. Blue pump, blue sandal, blue boot – I don’t care as long as it’s blue! At the end of the month, I will gather up all of the entries and I will choose 2 winners to win a $25 giftcard to DSW – Designer Shoe Warehouse. That’s it!

Not only will you be participating in one of the most fashionable social media campaigns ever (obsessed with shoes, hello), you’ll have a chance to win a free giftcard just for doing your part to raise awareness and funds for breast cancer.

Here’s how to enter: 1. Take a picture of you in a blue shoe. 2. Tag @Ninewest & @candycoatedclosets and use #9WFTBC and #FTBCxCCC in order to enter. Please make sure you follow this rule exactly and use the appropriate hashtags (make sure they are spelled correctly). 3. Tag a friend on your picture/s and spread the awareness.

You can enter as many times as you like until the end of the month. Again, just make sure you tag @Ninewest & @candycoatedclosets and use the appropriate hashtags #9WFTBC and #FTBCxCCC. That’s the only way you can enter my giveaway to be one of the winners at the end of the month. This contest will end on November 1, 2014 at 2:59 EST.

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#Shoefie For a Cause! Post a Blue Shoe and Enter to Win a $25 Designer Shoe Warehouse Giftcard!

First, I'm not sure what I did to deserve this awful cold but it has literally knocked me off of my feet for the past week. :-( I was hoping that I would at least be feeling better by now so that I could update you all but unfortunately my body has had enough. No, literally, I tried getting out of bed Sunday morning to do a photoshoot and my body said "Girl, are you crazy? Get back in bed and go to sleep" This is the worst!

On the bright side, I have some fun news for you all...it's #Shoefie time! By now, you should know that as obsessed as I am with giving back to the community, I am equally ecstatic about a great #shoefie. So I was very excited to hear about this #shoefie for a cause campaign!

For the 5^th year in a row, Nine West joins forces with Fashion Targets Breast Cancer (FTBC) to raise awareness and funds for breast cancer. During the week of October 15 – October 21, with each purchase in-store at retail, outlet or online of $125 or more, Nine West will donate $25 to FTBC. As a thank you to customers for their purchase and donation, they will receive a Nine West/FTBC branded pouch. Additionally, the brand will be accepting donations during the entire month of October in support of breast cancer awareness. Exclusive this year, Nine West has designed a limited edition Nine West/FTBC pump that will be available in NYC retail stores only and on Ninewest.com. Lastly, in an effort to engage the community, Nine West has created a social media campaign tied to the cause. For every photo upload made by a celebrity, blogger, editor or customer wearing a blue shoe using hashtag #9WFTBC and tagging @NineWest during the month of October, the brand will make a donation to FTBC.

Now, here is where we all make this #shoefie campaign the best that it can be. During the month of October, I'm challenging you all to post as many pictures as you can of you wearing a blue shoe. Blue pump, blue sandal, blue boot - I don't care as long as it's blue! At the end of the month, I will gather up all of the entries and I will choose 2 winners to win a $25 giftcard to DSW - Designer Shoe Warehouse. That's it!

Not only will you be participating in one of the most fashionable social media campaigns ever (obsessed with shoes, hello), you'll have a chance to win a free giftcard just for doing your part to raise awareness and funds for breast cancer.

Here's how to enter: 1. Take a picture of you in a blue shoe. 2. Tag @Ninewest & @candycoatedclosets and use #9WFTBC and #FTBCxCCC in order to enter. Please make sure you follow this rule exactly and use the appropriate hashtags (make sure they are spelled correctly). 3. Tag a friend on your picture/s and spread the awareness.

You can enter as many times as you like until the end of the month. Again, just make sure you tag @Ninewest & @candycoatedclosets and use the appropriate hashtags #9WFTBC and #FTBCxCCC. That's the only way you can enter my giveaway to be one of the winners at the end of the month. This contest will end on November 1, 2014 at 2:59 EST.

Here's is a screenshot of me posting so you can get an idea of how to enter!

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JustFab Annual Brand Ambassador Event

I hope you all had a beautiful start to the new week! You might be able to feel the happiness that is seeping through my keyboard and onto your screen as you read this. Yes, happiness waves!

I had an amazing weekend and I couldn't wait to come back and share with you guys. So prepare yourself for a picture heavy post.

As a brand ambassador, I have the opportunity to work exclusively with brands on their social media and marketing teams in an effort to reinvigorate the brand and make it relevant and exciting to targeted consumers. In order to do that effectively, it is a necessity that you have a thorough knowledge and passion for the brands that you're representing. So it should come as no surprise that I represent some of the best shoe companies and shoe clubs in the world.

This weekend, JustFab held it's annual Brand Ambassador event in New York City. Ambassador's from all over the world traveled to the city that never sleeps and it was nothing short of amazing. The event started Friday night with a Meet & Greet at La Biblioteca. There were cocktails, appetizers, tons of laughs and of course great fashion shoes.

The next day, everyone met up in Soho for a fun afternoon of team building activities. The Ambassadors were given a challenge to go out in the city and style an outfit for a mystery shoe. However, the catch was that each team was only given $40 to spend to create a stylish outfit with as many pieces as possible. That may sound like a challenge to some but being in New York, my team was able to put together two outfits with tons of accessories and still have change left over!

Once the challenge was completed, we all headed over to Dashing Divas for manicures and pedicures with a catered lunch by Cosi and drinks from Skinny Girl Cocktails!

    

I wish you were all there to join me but I did manage to bring some goodies back for a few special readers...

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Shoedazzle + Barbie Giveaway Ends Tonight!

Tonight's the night! Don't forget to enter my giveaway for your chance to win a $50 giftcard to Forever21, a $39.95 credit to Shoedazzle and one Riri Hearts MAC Pleasurebomb lipstick!

These prizes were specifically chosen so you can style yourself to be a Barbie girl! So here’s how this giveaway will work…

Rules: 1. Follow me on Instagram @Candycoatedclosets [Mandatory] 2. Repost the above giveaway picture and use the hashtag #SDSocialiteCCCNYFW – [Mandatory] One entry 3. Create an outfit – [Optional] One entry – You can use Polyvore or whatever other program you like. Make sure you use the hashtag #SDSocialiteCCCNYFW so that I can see it. Of course, I’d love to see an outfit with any Shoedazzle shoes! 4. You can earn two entries once a day until the close of the contest. Meaning you can enter everyday – once by reposting the giveaway photo and again by posting your styled outfit. Again, use #SDSocialiteCCCNYFW so that I can see your entries. 5. Your profile must be set to public. I can’t stress this enough. If your profile is set to private, then I can’t see your entries and well you can’t win! 6. Open to the United States and Internationally. 7. Participants must be 18 or older. 8. If you’re entering you must have an account at Shoedazzle so that I can order your credit. If you don’t, then you can choose one item for $39.95 and I will have it shipped to you. 9. Contest ends Monday, September 15th at 7:00pm EST. At that time I will verify entries and a winner will be chosen randomly. 10. Have fun, stay stylish and remember to dream big!

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The Week in a Recap

Well, this has been a very eventful week. My head is still spinning from trying to navigate my schedule around work, fashion week and all of the events, parties and deadlines that surrounds one of the biggest weeks in New York. Despite the long hours, no sleep and the humongous pile of clothes, accessories and make up scattered throughout my room, one thing remains the same... this week has been awesome and I can't wait to bring you more news on the fashion and beauty trends during Spring 2015 Fashion week!

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Lost Your Inspiration?

Lately, I've been feeling a bit torn on which direction I should take when it comes to my career in publishing and media. Should I focus more on the writing and editing aspect of the industry or should I channel my efforts into the creative side of styling and photography?

"Life's full of tough choices, ain't it?" - Yes, I mock myself in Disney character voices!

Anyway, until I figure my next move out, I'm doing what any working, fashion conscious, soon-to-be 28 year old would do....spend money! :-) At least this time it's money that is being well spent on research.

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Let the posts resume!

-Door knocking- Oh hello opportunity! It’s nice to meet you.

Ok I know that was kind of cheesy but that one line pretty much explains the reason for my absence. I told you all that I had to take a little break from my writing duties, reviews and posting pictures because I had to adjust to a few new things happening in my life.

Of course one can never fully adjust and I’m realizing there just isn’t enough time in the day to do everything that I need to do along with the things that I want to do (and sleep right?) but I’m figuring it all out day by day.

With all of that said, I’m slowly getting back into the swing of things, so it’s time to catch you all up on the pretty little things happening in Candy Coated Closets! Yes, my shoe pictures may have dwindled but that didn’t mean I would stop shopping! I mean, honestly!

Make sure you’re following me on Instagram @Candycoatedclosets Since I’m on the go so much now, I’ll be able to engage and interact with a lot more of you on there!

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Indulge: A Stylish Treat For Mothers

It's times like these that I really love what I do. Thursday, May 8th, Roosevelt Field Mall hosted an event for the chicest Moms to come and celebrate Mother's Day in style. From 5pm to 8pm, you could come and celebrate that special woman in your life and treat them to a fabulous night of fashion, shopping, beauty and fun. There were tons of in-mall events and even in-store events that offered hand massages, demonstrations, facials, giveaways and styling tips so mom could have a few special hours of pampering away from the children.

If you were one of the lucky ones to make it there early, there was an opportunity to sign up for a swag bag. Of course you know I snagged one so you could check out its contents. Overall, I wasn't too thrilled with this swag bag. It was filled with coupons, flyers and other random things that seemed to be laying around the participating stores.

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New York Wedding Salon Bridal Show

If you're a bride to be or anyone remotely interested in bridal fashion then stay tuned! This post will be filled with information and pictures for you!

I had the opportunity to attend the New York Wedding Salon Bridal Show that was held at the Metropolitan Pavilion. The Wedding Salon featured exhibits on everything, and I mean everything any bride, groom or member of the bridal party needs in preparation for the big day. There were tons of cake designers, florists, DJs, videographers, photographers, desert tastings, live entertainment... Seriously I could go on listing all of the different vendors there but we need to get to the fun stuff.

When you first walked in, you were greeted by the sounds of 45 Riots and the living table by the Screaming Queens Entertainment.

Seriously, how amazing does the living table look? I love how they incorporated the Vegas showgirl theme with a wedding twist. There were cute little mints, brochures, and promotional magnets on the table which showed the functionality of the strolling table. This would be a great addition for any wedding couple looking to add that extra something to their list of costumed performers or live entertainment.

Part of the reason why I think I loved the living table so much is probably because of 45 Riots. The musicians and singer definitely killed it with their variation of live R&B and Pop hits. Most of the time, I don't even look twice at some live performances at these shows because they can be way too loud but 45 Riots provided a cool, energetic vibe to the event.

As I ventured deeper into the Pavilion, that's when I started seeing all of the different vendors. I'll let the pictures do that the talking for this part...

   

Now this is how you put on on Wedding Expo!

What do you think of the pictures?

Xoxo,

CCC

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National Shoe Lover Day Celebration

October 26th was National Shoe Lover Day at DSW Designer Shoe Warehouse and they sure celebrated around the country in a big way! Shoppers around the country had a chance to win free shoes for a year in every store. All you had to do was make a purchase (either online or in-store) to receive a free peel off card for the chance to win.

DSW also offered the first 100 customers that shopped in store and made a purchase their choice of a National Shoe Lover Day t-shirt or exclusive shade of Anise nail polish. After the first 100 customers, they gave out "I am a shoe lover" tote with purchase. But the fun didn't stop there....

They also decided to run another promotion for another chance to win free shoes for a year! All you had to do was make a video showing how you were celebrating National Shoe Lover Day and you were entered to win. 50 runners up would win a $50 giftcard as well.

I was all IN this contest after reading all of that. My local DSW In Lawrence NY opens at 10:00 am on Saturday so you know I was camped out early at 9:00 waiting for the doors to open. Do not play with this girl, her shoes, and a chance to win some prizes.

Since it was so early, I decided to keep my outfit simple. I throw on black jeans, my long sleeve shoe lover t-shirt, my shoe necklace and of course my Zigi boots. Yes my shoes needed to make a statement today.

I arrived with my shoe loving Mother and Aunt and let them loose in the store. I on the other hand went straight to the register to buy a pack of foot gels so I could secure my exclusive polish and t-shirt. I was not missing those items.

Once I made my purchase, I walked around the store and ended up speaking to some of the associates about the day and what they had in store for them. I noticed they had brand new tablets strapped around their necks that they could use to sign up new members and (even better) search online for an item you want that's not in stock in the store. Can you say heaven sent? It gets so tiring having to find the perfect shoe and then walk all the up to the front of the store and wait on a long line just to find out if the shoe is available online or another store?

I ended up picking up the exclusive Steven by Steve Madden Revolvir Pump in store.

• Leopard calf hair upper
• Ankle strap with velcro
• Runs true to size (I wouldn't size down for the pointed toe)
• 4 1/4 covered heel

After that, I came home and started to work on my video of how I spent the day celebrating. Now I can get away with taking these shoe, outfit of the day, and accessory pictures by myself but a video is a different story. So it took me a few hours to figure out what I wanted to do and how to do it with decent lighting. Seriously...don't try this at home folks.

[youtube=http://youtu.be/gEN9fpngkYY]

I think it took me about 6 videos to get this one and I gave up! The song is Labels & Love from Sex & the City 1 and I had to add it to channel my inner Carrie Bradshaw...(dreams) one day soon.

Yes before you all ask I think I do have everything they may have given away over the past few years...and I'm not ashamed!

I also ordered the Betsey Johnson My One & Only Multi Tote and the Sam Edelman Mila Bootie which I'll be reviewing in another post.

How did you celebrate National Shoe Lover Day?

Xoxo,

CCC

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Long Island Bridal Show & Expo

Last week, I had the opportunity to attend the Long Island Bridal Expo at the Marriott Hotel. It was one of those events that sounded great on paper but something fell through during the execution phase of it.

The expo advertised about 40 different displays from varying vendors to showcase photography, china, gowns, jewelry, dj's, invitations and more! You know the kind of thing every bride and her party is excited to spend a girls night out at. Unfortunately, this one dropped the ball and it's sad to say that one of the best things at the show was the flower display.

Normally, I would adjust my expectations because hey not every event is going to have high fashion, new trends, and tons of giveaways. However, this one completely missed the mark. The fashion show was a complete waste of time - the dresses were falling off of the models and most of the models looked way too nervous to be on stage showcasing a collection. It just was not a good look.

I was also disappointed with the "free dinner buffet". This buffet consisted of 5 noodles with sauce and no drinks (not even water). Again, I may have needed to adjust my expectations but I've gotten used to event planners making sure to keep the women attending their event very fat and happy because that's when they (we - me included) tend to spend the most money and that's what these events are normally about.

On a scale of 1-10, I give this event a 3 and that's only because I really liked the flower display.

Xoxo,

CCC

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Roosevelt Field - Simon Fashion Now 2013

Welcome to Fashion - Long Island style!

Last week, I was so excited to attend the Simon Fashion Now event hosted at Roosevelt Field. This was a fantastic event that showcased the latest and hottest fall fashion trends for two days through runway fashion shows, product demonstrations, freebies and some great giveaways. The event was free to the public so it was definitely the place to be with your friends.

This was my first time attending a fashion event this big and it was an amazing experience to see all of the planning, marketing, and design that went into such a big event. The clothes were of course just as fabulous!

When I arrived there, I promptly signed up for my free exclusive Simon Fashion Now swag bag that was filled with all sorts of goodies from varying stores inside the mall. Then I took a walk around the stage to check out all of the different vendors there. If you ever have the opportunity, I highly recommend going to events like these because it's a great way to find out about different stores in your area as well as receive some freebies and coupons.

At 1:00 the fashion shows started and of course I took a front row seat! The shows ran every hour and brands like JcPenney, Macy's, Guess, Marciano by Guess, Aerosoles, Call it Spring had some fabulous pieces working the runway (see some pictures below). In between the shows, Simon Fashion Now hosted different games to keep the audience involved. They hosted a game called Ready, Set, Style where they picked stylish fashionistas from the audience to join them on stage for an interactive styling competition to win a SImon giftcard. Go ahead and think about it...a styling competition...fashionistas....win a giftcard? Um yeah I was so going up there (lol).

Who's that on stage? She, me, her! She did that!

Myself and a partner had two minutes to style a model from head to toe and the crowd had to pick their favorite look and yes I won! My model is the one with the cream jacket and emerald necklace and handbag. So me right?!

After that, Simon Fashion now had these different texting games to win giftcards to stores in the mall and I won a $50 to Bobby Burger Palace as well!

Overall, the fashion show was a huge success and a great night out. Here's a quick list of a few things I learned:

1. Have your outfit picked out a few days before the event. No matter how many times I say I'm going to pick out my outfit early, I never learn and I wake up rushing trying to go through everything. I hate all of my clothes and of course that's the day you get pulled on stage.

2. Do not use a brand new flat iron days before the event. I just used a brand new Izunami Flat Iron that I ordered (review coming up) and my hair was absolutely pin straight. I had absolutely no body or bounce to it and then I had to stare at the beautiful models with their curls and bounce...hated them (lol).

3. Don't attend the show unless you plan on spending money very soon! The new styles I saw made me want to change my entire wardrobe!

Here's a few pictures from the event (courtesy of the Roosevelt Field Facebook page)

Were you at the show? What'd you think of it? Sound off in the comments!

Xoxo,

CCC

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