Sephora Pick-me-up

Today I went into the city for a doctors appointment and I couldn't pass up the opportunity to stop by Sephora on my way back. It wasn't a convenience that it was located right next to the train station, it was fate. So like the typical shopoholic, I went inside and literally spent about two hours there going through all the make up products and I purchased a few gems. (I'll post the links of everything I bought below.) The workers there were really nice per usual and one of the beauty experts showed me how to do a basic smokey eye, which is where the black eye shadow and eye liner come in play. I'm usually so bad at any kind of eye make up, except for mascara thats literally the only thing I can properly apply. She made it seem so simple and straightforward so the second I came home I tried it for myself and it actually came out pretty darn good. This is why I love Sephora, not only do they have every brand of cosmetics imaginable but the workers there are so friendly and eager to service you with all your make up needs.
   
What I would mostly love to praise about Sephora is this new and AMAZING system called the color IQ that they have created. For me, personally, it's really hard to find the perfect cover up or concealer that matches my exact skin tone. Every time I go by a cosmetics counter every worker would tell me I'm a different skin tone and I would end up coming home with ten different cover ups none of which match my skin tone to a tee. Sephora on the other hand, created this system where they measure your skin tone and link it to a computer and give you all the matches of all the products that you could wear on your skin that are your perfect 100% shade match. It's really simple, you can either go to the store barefaced with no cover up or anything or have them wipe off a little spot on your forehead, neck, and the side of your face. Then they put a little handheld skin scanner thing to your face (I'm not sure what else to call it) and it takes pictures of your skin in those three areas to measure skin tone, highlights, low lights of your face etc... that scanner hooks up to the computer and in seconds it shows you all the matches of concealers, cover ups, and color moisturizers that best fit your face. The best part- if you don't want to buy them now, you can e-mail the list to yourself and you'll always have it for next time. Sephora is the only place that does this, so girls I really suggest you go get this done, its free and it links you to your perfect matches so no more buying cover up and having it not be your skin tone. It's just a waste of money and frankly very annoying!

These are my two favorite products that I've purchased. The mascara is by far my favorite mascara in the world. It lengthens your eyelashes to an unbelievable extent and volumes them. Basically, it gives off the look of fake lashes without all the hassle of putting them on and making sure they stay put throughout the night. As for the lip color, its actually tinted lip balm with SPF 15. It nourishes and moisturizes your lips while giving it subtle color which is perfect for a nice day or night out. Usually I find that lipstick dries out my lips which I absolutely hate but this gives off the effect of lipstick while it's working away at making your lips baby smooth. 

Even though lipstick does try out my lips I couldn't resist picking one up. (My trick is to apply baby lips from maybeline a minute before applying lipstick and a little bit after it dries on my lips and then constantly throughout the night after I reapply the lipstick.) The first color on the left is a sephora brand lipstick from the line "Sephora Rogue" and it's in the color Desire. The second color is the sugar passion tinted lip balm. I have to say it is a tiny bit darker than it appears in the picture maybe by around 20%. This gem comes in many colors so definitely pick one up- it's a must have!

As promised here are the links to items:

Too Faced Perfect Eyes Waterproof Liner- in black
Benefit The POREfessional- pore minimizer
Too Faced Lip Injection Extreme- Lip Plumper- this product is amazing for the perfect pout without having to go through all the painful injections of actual botox. It does sting a tiny bit but only for the first 15 seconds or so.
Benefit They're Real Mascara
Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment
Sephora Rouge Lipstick- if you're interested in buying this lipstick I suggest you order it online because in store its full price.
Sephora Collection- Colorful Eyeshadow
Sephora Collection- Microsmooth Blush Duo

xx Victoria Wixson

Healthy Oat-Bran Protein Pancakes!

Pancakes are by far my favorite breakfast food, but while being on a heath kick it may be hard to satisfy all of your cravings -- this recipe puts a new twist on pancakes, and makes a satisfying breakfast.

What You'll Need:
1/2 Cup of "Oat flour" (I used a mixture of whole grain rye, barley, oats and wheat.)
1 teaspoon Chia Seeds
1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1 Egg
2 tablespoons Greek Yogurt
1 teaspoon of Baking Soda (Don't confuse this with baking powder haha)
1/4 cup Water

FIY: Greek yogurt can be GREAT for you, it has many benefits but make sure you check the sugar content in it there are some Greek yogurts with up to 24g of sugar per serving! I also recommend buying plain Greek yogurt and adding in the flavoring yourself, because that is where a lot of the sugar comes from

Directions:
Make your "Oat Flour" -- This is simple just place your Oats into a food processor and blend them until they have a flour-like consistency.
Mix together your DRYS: oat flour, chia seeds, and baking soda.
Mix together your WETS: egg, water, Greek yogurt, vanilla
Lastly, mix together your drys and wets!
Your mixture is going to be thick, not like regular pancake batter -- but this is fine! They should still come out fluffy.
Spoon out your mixture onto a non-stick pan, and fry them until golden.

How to serve:
I layered my pancakes with greek yogurt, it gives them more of a taste, and makes them moister!
I also sliced up some banana and they were deeeeelish!

Dig in!
-- Your foodie, Gabriella Anatra

Baked Mini Falafels!

A healthy twist on a Mediterranean favorite!

What You'll Need:
1 can (15 oz) of chickpeas, drained and rinsed. (I used the "Goya" brand.)
3 cloves of pressed garlic
2 teaspoons garlic
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons coriander 
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 of an onion *minced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro
1/4 cup fresh parsley

Optional:
Crimini mushrooms
Cucumber

FIY: Adding baking soda to the falafel makes them airier!
Why are my falafels green? The more coriander you add, the greener the falafels will become.

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 450 degrees.

After rinsing and draining your chickpeas, you want to place them in a food processor with all of your other ingredients. You going to want to mix them together until they are nicely blended and you have a soft mixture.

You then want to shape the mixture into small balls, on a baking sheet covered in wax paper.
To give the falafels a nice crust, you can brush some olive oil on top.

You're now ready to place them in the oven. After the first fifteen minutes of baking you're going to want to take them out turn them over and place them back in the oven for another 15 minutes.

How to serve:
Traditionally falafels are served in a pita bread with various vegetables and smoothered in tziki sauce.
Going the healthier route, I decided to just serve my falafels atop a bed of lettuce and julienned cucumbers and also sauteed some crimini mushrooms on the side.

Of course, I had to make the tziki sauce for dipping because it pairs fabulously with the falafel!
All you'll need is 3 tablespoons of lemon juice, 5 tablespoons of water and 1/2 cup of Tahini paste.
*Tahini paste is sold at Whole Foods, and also available at many Middle Eastern Stores. 

Voila!
Your foodie,
Gabriella Anatra

Weekly Style Forecast

Boyfriend jeans. That's right I said it. No, not your boyfriend's jeans but the only boyfriends you will ever need in your life are these bad boys. Lately boyfriend jeans have been all the rage. We've seen them on models, actresses, even that odd next door neighbor of yours. Not to be confused with mom jeans which of course are unflattering on just about anyone, even you mom. I have formed a little addiction to these jeans lately. Their relaxed fit look super sexy with a pair of heels or ankle booties yet feel so comfortable that you feel like you're in sweats- and get this you can actually move around in them unlike those skin tight skinny jeans of yours. I've been on the hunt for the perfect pair of boyfriend jeans which was a little more difficult than I expected since the ones I fell in love with have a 300$ price tag. Though, throughout my extensive search, I have come across quite a few pairs with reasonable price tags. Here I bring you, readers of this blog, the must have item in your closet for fall: the boyfriend jean.

One teaspoon- Awesome Baggies 140$ - (I got myself a pair of these babies, cant wait for them to come in the mail.) If you dont want to order them from Australia, other sites like free people and shopwasteland have these in stock and ship from the states.

Free People- Relaxed Skinnies 98$ - These dont have boyfriend in the name but technically these are boyfriend jeans according to the way the fit looks and the model wears them. I would suggest sizing up in these for a more looser fit.

Nasty Gal- Ripped Boyfriend Jeans 68$
Nasty Gal- Ex-boyfriend Jeans 78$
Nasty Gal- Ex-boyfriend Jeans in True Blue 78$
Asos- Distressed Boyfriend Jean 84.45$

A little tip for you boyfriend jeans lovers. You should size up for a more relaxed fit and also try rolling them up a bit to show off the ankle and those cute shoes of yours.

xx Victoria Wixson

That lazy weekend feeling

Striped Sailor Tee- J.Crew 49.50$
One teaspoon cutoffs- 100$
Valley Eyewear- 200$
Jeffrey Campbell overholt ankle boot- 158$
Rebecca Minkoff Mini Mac- 195$
Alex and ani braclets- 24-28$ each

xx Victoria Wixson

Easy Vegan Banana Ice Cream

An easy and quick lactose free summer treat!

What you'll need:
Ripe Frozen Bananas -You should freeze these for at least two hours!
Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
Almonds
Vanilla
Peanut Butter
A blender

Basically you're free to run wild with this ice cream, feel free to throw in some frozen blueberries, honey, carob chips -- anything goes!

Healthy hint: The brown patches on your bananas produce a substance called TNF, or Tumor Necrosis Factor. This substance has the ability to combat abnormal cells! The riper or browner your bananas are the better their "anti-cancer" quality is!

Healthy hint: Peanut butter can be your best friend or your worst enemy! When buying your peanut butter make sure there are NO additives! The only ingredient should be peanuts! It's just as tasty, and can cut out so many calories from your day. (In addition to it being MUCH healthier.)

The brown patches also serve as an indication to how sweet the banana will be, the browner - the sweeter and the better for this ice cream treat!


 First step: Slice your banana(s) and toss them into your blender! I used the "Magic Bullet" and it worked great. Then you can proceed to add in all of your other ingredients.

What's next?
Blend it up! It took about 10 seconds in my blender - but you can continue blending until your mixture looks well mixed and smooth and creamy. (This shouldn't take long, considering the texture of the banana)

Finito! You're done! Top with a dollop of peanut butter, some nuts or dried berries - whatever suits your fancy!

-- Your foodie, Gabriella Anatra

Two girls living in the big city coming together to bring you a blog of our two favorite things- fashion and food. Stay tuned for our favorite recipes, seasonal fashion staples and more. Together we will take you on adventures from our local farmers market to shopping down the streets SoHo. Hope you enjoy what we have in store for you.

xoxo Victoria Wixson and Gabriella Anatra