Month: January 2012

by Allison

What to wear this Valentine’s Day

Let’s face it, Valentine’s Day is coming up.  Don’t throw things at me, I didn’t invent the whole shenanigan.  I just work here.

Love it or hate it, it’s time to get spiffy for a night of romance.  Valentine’s is all about making that perfect love connection, or renewing the one you’ve got, or lounging around in holey sweats and your ex-boyfriend’s t-shirt while you watch romantic comedies with a pint of ice cream in your lap.

It’s your day, whatever.

Let's get it on

I’m not one to pass judgement anyway;  Viktor is firmly in the camp of Valentine haters.  He thinks Valentine’s Day is made up of corporate greed and nonsense, and as such refuses to participate no matter how many tears I cry.  So I make cute little treats for the kids and make a special dessert for dinner and call it a day.

But in the world of Make Believe, the Valentine’s Day in my head is amazing. 

Viktor swoops into the house with flowers and a mix CD of love songs just for me.  He has planned an overnight sleepover for the kids and takes me to my favorite restaurant for a night of flirty nonsense.  … >> find out more…

Allison

I'm Allison, founder and editor of Petit Elefant. I run the gamut from granola to glamour and love everything in between. I think the beach is always a good idea, as is Diet Dr. Pepper; on ice. Sometimes I put out the fires and sometimes I start them. Sometimes I really do have it all together. Sometimes my children say otherwise. We just like to keep it real around here.

by Allison

Longer lasting lip color

Finding longer lasting lip color is like happening upon a pasture full of unicorns.  It just doesn’t happen.  Everyone talks about it like it’s no big thing,

“Oh my amazing lipstick?  My girl at the {muffled muffled, garble garble} counter just keeps it in stock for me.  I don’t even know what it’s called!  *giggle*”

long lasting lip color

Liar.

If girlfriend has perfect lipstick all through dinner, she’s got a secret up her sleeve she doesn’t want you to know about.  Especially if you’re frenemies.  Swapping that kind of secret is a thing for insiders only, best friends and sisters.  After that, it’s every woman for herself.

You know I’m always looking out for you though.  You can feel it in your blood, I always have your back.  I wouldn’t want you to {gasp!} go out in public with crackly uneven lip color.  *shudder*

I have a cheap solution for you: Revlon Lip Stain.  This stuff is available at the drugstore, your supermarket, probably the gas station on the corner.  It’s between $5-8 and is worth sacrificing your daily cappuccino.  It’s not meant to replace the hardcore stuff in your purse, but I really like it for day-to-day … >> find out more…

Allison

I'm Allison, founder and editor of Petit Elefant. I run the gamut from granola to glamour and love everything in between. I think the beach is always a good idea, as is Diet Dr. Pepper; on ice. Sometimes I put out the fires and sometimes I start them. Sometimes I really do have it all together. Sometimes my children say otherwise. We just like to keep it real around here.

by Allison

$100 giveaway for organizing bags

This giveaway is now closed, thanks to everyone who entered, shared + tweeted!  The winner is suzieqw!  Please email me asap to claim your booty allisonATpetitelefantDOTcom

This week’s giveaway is sponsored by Thirty-One, a company full of organizing totes and accessories to make organizing your life easier. Today they’re giving away a $100 gift card to spend on whatever you’d like from their catalog; I have my eye on the wicker magazine holders, heaven knows I have enough of a magazine stash to fill one already.

$100 giveaway for organizing bags

The thermal totes are pretty amazing too, I mean who doesn’t want to keep groceries cold on the way home from the store?

Giveaway Details:

  1. Leave a comment telling me what you’d choose out of the Thirty-One Gifts catalog.
  2. Giveaway ends Monday January 30th at Midnight MST.
  3. If you want to Like Petit Elefant on Facebook and share this giveaway on your own page, you’ll get two extra entries.
  4. Tweet about the giveaway and you have one more.  Be sure to tell me in the comments.
  5. I’ll choose a random winner + announce on this page when the giveaway closes.

Good luck!… >> find out more…

Allison

I'm Allison, founder and editor of Petit Elefant. I run the gamut from granola to glamour and love everything in between. I think the beach is always a good idea, as is Diet Dr. Pepper; on ice. Sometimes I put out the fires and sometimes I start them. Sometimes I really do have it all together. Sometimes my children say otherwise. We just like to keep it real around here.

by Allison

Today is your day

kids

I have the kind of pregnancies no one should ever experience.  The kind of pregnancies that didn’t exist 100 years ago because the mother died 12 weeks in and stopped bothering everyone with her nonstop complications.  I’ve talked a little bit about it here before, and even though I’m still haunted by the memories and don’t like to talk about it a ton, I learned some really amazing life lessons from the whole shebang.

There’s something about flirting with death a handful of times that makes one realize there’s only so much time to make the good stuff happen, and that time is right this very second.

playing in leaves

The last go-round {with Charming seven years ago} was the worst, worse than the most horrible I could have imagined, but the minute it was all over and I’d recovered enough to stay upright for more than 10 minutes at a time, I came out both guns blazing.  {sorry, couldn’t help it}  I had some major epiphanies, one of them being the fact that DUDE, I’m still alive!  Holy cow, I’m still alive!  No, really I made it!  The baby made it too, and he’s fantastic!

I took note mentally of a … >> find out more…

Allison

I'm Allison, founder and editor of Petit Elefant. I run the gamut from granola to glamour and love everything in between. I think the beach is always a good idea, as is Diet Dr. Pepper; on ice. Sometimes I put out the fires and sometimes I start them. Sometimes I really do have it all together. Sometimes my children say otherwise. We just like to keep it real around here.

by Allison

Tea light made from an orange

It’s still Winter, even though the weather in Utah has been ten kinds of insane.  She’s a fickle little diva, that Winter.  Anyhow, since citrus is so widely available in the depths of despair December/January it’s a fun time to get your craft on and whip up a tea light made from an orange.  Or three.

Serious.

tea light made from an orange

Martha, procurer of all things beautiful, taught me how to do this little bit of magic with oranges and I’ll tell you what: it’s a super easy and totally gorgeous craft. 

Promise.

I just don’t have time and/or energy for any drawn out nonsense, and my guess is neither do you.  But this would be a little bit cool and romantic to try for a cozy Valentine’s day dinner.  Maybe I’ll whip out some magic and impress Viktor.  Then again, maybe I’ll eat a protein bar and have a Downton Abbey marathon instead, boys optional.

tea light from an orange

I’m betting on the latter.

votive candle holder

So here’s how it all breaks down, the nitty gritty details you need to know to make your own tea light.

How to: tea light made from an orange:

Allison

I'm Allison, founder and editor of Petit Elefant. I run the gamut from granola to glamour and love everything in between. I think the beach is always a good idea, as is Diet Dr. Pepper; on ice. Sometimes I put out the fires and sometimes I start them. Sometimes I really do have it all together. Sometimes my children say otherwise. We just like to keep it real around here.

by Allison

Winter riding clothes for women

Winter riding clothes

 

 

 

 

Winter riding clothes by petitelefant featuring skinny leg jeans

Drykorn blazer
€199 - conleys.de

Rag & bone skinny leg jeans
$176 - barneys.com

Rupert Sanderson high heel booties
$945 - rupertsanderson.com

3 1 Phillip Lim clutch bag
$425 - barneys.com

MICHAEL Michael Kors gold jewelry
$250 - nordstrom.com

Jules Smith rose gold jewelry
£85 - flannelsfashion.com

Roberta Chiarella post earrings
$68 - maxandchloe.com

MTWTFSS Weekday blue shawl
€10 - weekday.com

… >> find out more…

Allison

I'm Allison, founder and editor of Petit Elefant. I run the gamut from granola to glamour and love everything in between. I think the beach is always a good idea, as is Diet Dr. Pepper; on ice. Sometimes I put out the fires and sometimes I start them. Sometimes I really do have it all together. Sometimes my children say otherwise. We just like to keep it real around here.

by Allison

Make-up tips for photography

I’m teaching a design camp at Altitude Summit in Salt Lake City this weekend about make-up tips for photography.  You know, for all your big photo shoots.  So I thought I’d share the bulk of my presentation here with you, because I’m a giver.  {but mostly because I need cliff notes while I’m presenting}

Regular makeup doesn’t do the job when you’re being photographed, especially if the photographer is using any kind of flash.  It’s really easy for the colors on your face to get blown out {too white} and distorted from what they naturally look like, but I’m going to share a few little make-up tricks anyone can do to look fabulous in photos.

makeup tips for photography

Make-up tips for photography

  • start with a clean, moisturized face
  • groom your eyebrows: shape/pluck/spoolie, fill in with eyeshadow
  • put on your makeup in natural light
  • less is more for an everyday look, for a photo shoot amp it up a little
  • use a make-up primer to fill in lines and scars
  • start with a tinted moisturizer, blend really well
  • always tap your brush before applying blush and eyeshadow to get rid of excess color
  • apply blush at the apples of cheeks, leave most of the

    • … >> find out more…

Allison

I'm Allison, founder and editor of Petit Elefant. I run the gamut from granola to glamour and love everything in between. I think the beach is always a good idea, as is Diet Dr. Pepper; on ice. Sometimes I put out the fires and sometimes I start them. Sometimes I really do have it all together. Sometimes my children say otherwise. We just like to keep it real around here.

by Allison

Magical Polish cemetery

Europe sidewalk

The best part about our European vacation wasn’t the playgrounds, although they were full of rad.  Or the Turkish baths in Budapest, although I’d like to move into one of the changing cabins post haste.  It wasn’t even the bubbly water, or the trains, or the month without a cell phone, even though each and every one of those things were worth the trip.

magical Polish cemetery

The best part about Europe was seeing where my husband grew up, seeing his primary school and where his family lives and where his parents lived during the war.  And part of all that was seeing the cemetery where some of Viktor’s family are buried.

polish cemetery gate

Most of Viktor’s family died in and around World War II and ended up in unmarked graves or concentration camps.  I can count on one hand the number of living relatives on both sides of Viktor’s family combined.  There isn’t  much left but memories and a few photographs, so I was really excited to visit a cemetery and a family grave site.

In Europe, at least in Poland, families take care of the graves.  There’s a chapel in the cemetery and while the priest and some nuns take care … >> find out more…

Allison

I'm Allison, founder and editor of Petit Elefant. I run the gamut from granola to glamour and love everything in between. I think the beach is always a good idea, as is Diet Dr. Pepper; on ice. Sometimes I put out the fires and sometimes I start them. Sometimes I really do have it all together. Sometimes my children say otherwise. We just like to keep it real around here.

by Allison

What’s in your purse series week 76

This week’s What’s In Your Purse Series purse is courtesy of me, moi, yours truly, me and mine.

I started the purse series in June of 2010 by sharing photos of the contents of my purse, and you guys have been amazing to dump your purses and share the contents along the way for seventy-six weeks.  That’s a ton of purses.

I still have a handful of purses in my arsenal {thank you!} but I thought I’d share what’s in mine this week.  I came home from CES and dumped the contents of my purse onto the kitchen table only to discover an astonishing array of crap.  I honestly have no idea how it all fits in there.

A true Mary Poppins bag if there ever was one.

what's in your purse series chloe purse

I’ve been carrying around this super cute green Chloe purse, which apparently fits a whole boatload of nonsense.  I literally dumped it all out on the table, and since I’m so majorly O.C.D. I had to organize it all by category.  Here we go, from left to right.

what's in my purse series

Allison

I'm Allison, founder and editor of Petit Elefant. I run the gamut from granola to glamour and love everything in between. I think the beach is always a good idea, as is Diet Dr. Pepper; on ice. Sometimes I put out the fires and sometimes I start them. Sometimes I really do have it all together. Sometimes my children say otherwise. We just like to keep it real around here.