Style Stud: Paula Mendoza

April 18, 2014.Reading time 2 minutes.

Recently my jewelry infatuation has been taken to another level. Every piece of jewelry I pass I want to adopt and make my own. Perhaps it is because I have a proper place for them to live now (shout out to Home Goods), so they no longer have to co-exist in a tangled, mangled web of insanity on my dresser.

I wouldn’t say my taste in jewelry is conventional. The stranger the better in my book. I would rather wear a gold tiger around my neck then a simple piece from Tiffany. So with that being said, I would like to introduce this jewelry designer that I have been swooning over, and slightly stalking via Instagram, Paula Mendoza.

I can’t even put in to words how fantastic her line is. But every time I see a piece, I get this tingly feeling all over my body and start drooling … just a little (sexy, right?) I also start plotting how I can obtain a piece of her work by doing things like oh … you know … selling my body, selling family members, selling my soul. Yes. That is how much I adore Paula Mendoza jewelry. I know I’m a freak … I love me some obscure jewelry, alright?

So instead of freaking you out more with using imagery and adjectives explaining why I adore this brand so much, let me show you a few of my favorite pieces.

And if you have been looking to get me a little gift just for funsies, I would happily accept anything below … :::cough, cough::: Easter Bunny (Mom).

Swooning Over Some Spark

September 25, 2013.Reading time 2 minutes.

Is there anything better in life than surviving an ultra bland Wednesday only to come home to find a shiny package patiently waiting for you from the Postal Service?! Okay … maybe it wasn’t shiny … maybe it was cardboard, but in my head it had a halo around it, alright.

So I bet you are dying to know what was inside, right? Well let me walk you through my experience of opening said package …

Step 1: Desperately trying not to rip open my package like the Incredible Hulk.

Step 2: Succeed … and holy lord, is that a Kitsch hair tie keeping together the posh and pink tissue paper?! The note and spectacular post card … Packaging. Is. Everything.

Step 3: You had me at black velvet jewelry bag.

Step 4: And there she is. :::Sigh::: Isn’t she beautiful? My 1980’s vintage chunky chain bar necklace. :::Swoon::: It may never leave my neck.

Step 5: For real, good luck getting this off of my body, kids.

So if you are looking for a birthday gift, a “you’re my best friend and I adore you” gift, an early Christmas present, or perhaps a gift from you to you to remind yourself how fantastic you are (which I thoroughly recommend doing this every now and then … it’s only healthy) … look to Sweet and Spark for some unique vintage jewelry that I can almost guarantee will always be in style … because vintage is always chic. You heard it here first, kids.

And to Jillian over at Sweet and Spark … thank you truly for sparkifying my bland and boring ol’ Wednesday.

Spark yourselves immediately.

Meet My New Obsession: Compliment.

February 27, 2013.Reading time 4 minutes.

I’m a firm believer in putting yourself in other people’s shoes. Why? Because you have no idea what is going on behind the scenes. You think you may know … but in reality, you have no idea. Think of all the shit you keep bottled up. If only life gave us an electric yellow emotional Post-it to slap on our foreheads so we can write things like, “yeah … just broke up with boyfriend … Back. Off,” and have everyone leave us alone. ::Sigh::: But alas, it has not been invented yet.

I, for example, have been feeling a little blue these past few weeks, for reasons I will not disclose here because the electric yellow emotional Post-it has yet to be invented. But when I got my very first jewelry delivery from Compliment this week, all of a sudden it was like I got sparked back into the glorious land of unicorns, sunshine and baby kittens.

I came across Compliment and immediately was drawn to it simply because of Melissa, the founder and creative director, and her lovely skill for crafting handmade (no two pieces are exactly the same) fashion-forward jewelry, as well as her theory that, “sometimes people around us could use a boost … something to uplift. Something to build them up. One easy way is to give them a sincere compliment.”

So I opened my little brown Compliment box only to find a beautiful piece of jewelry accompanied by a simple typed note stating, “You Are Marvelous.” Each box had a different compliment, and each one put a bigger smile on my face. Why? Because it was something special, something different, something so unexpected, yet uplifting. It is very easy to go buy a friend in need a card, bottle of wine, even a piece of jewelry from his/her fav store. But to send them something original from Compliment with a short and sweet note letting them know how fantastic they are … well, that is the right kind of medicine to help anyone in need.

Nowadays everything is so damn competitive and literally at an 11 at all times. I swear I blame the reality TV :::shaking fist::: Everyone is yelling, at each other’s throats, talking shit, spreading rumors … OY. Enough … instead, acknowledge a friend/family member/co-worker/ frenemy in need and send them a little something with a reminder that everything is okay. That they are bad ass and important in this world. Acknowledge them … because sometimes that is all it takes. A little something special and a nod that they are recognized.

So I insist you check out Compliment. I’m a sucker for fantastic packaging … and this rocks. I’m also a huge fan of the punctuation in the names of the jewelry. Period. Seriously. So thank you to Compliment and Melissa for making my blues fade away a bit!

And you know what … I am marvelous … dammit!

For more information on Compliment, tweet them @ShopCompliment or visit their website!

Taking Off The Bling

November 1, 2011.Reading time 4 minutes.

If you don’t already know, I have an affinity for shiny things, especially accessories. I’m mildly obsessed and find walking into the accessories section of any store an extreme pick me up. Walking through an oasis of costume jewelry and glitter might be better than Prozac, just sayin’.

But, unfortunately, with so many options, it is quite easy to do a little thing called “over accessorizing.” I recently was talking to a man at a bar and he was commenting on how you can tell how old someone is by how many accessories they are wearing, and I gotta agree with him. I look at pictures of myself from freshman year of college and I’m wearing like 14 necklaces, 5 rings and a flashy belt. What … Why? Well, because I was trying to be Carrie Bradshaw … in fact sometimes I still am … truth. It was my way of making my outfits “crazy” and “outlandish.” But really it just turned out like an not cohesive hot mess (story of my life).

This man, perhaps an accessory angel from the Gods, also gave a glorious piece of advice that I felt compelled to share with all of you. AHEM. Before leaving the house, take off ONE piece of jewelry, that is if you are wearing more than one piece. I live and die for statement jewelry, like a big chunky cuff or a huge obscene ring that goes up to my knuckle, but there is no need to wear both at the same time.

Sometimes I feel like we forget the point of accessories. Yes, sometimes I plan an outfit AROUND a specific piece of jewelry I want to rock … but TECHNICALLY their purpose is to accentuate an outfit, you know … make it pop. Yes, of course if I’m wearing a fabulous piece of jewelry I want people to comment, but when you have the earrings, the cuff, the belt, the pin, the five rings and hair clip … it turns into crazytown. People will be less compelled to comment on your look and be more compelled to gossip around the water cooler about how so and so forgot to take her meds today and put on her entire jewelry box.

So here is my challenge to all of you fantastic readers, before leaving the house, take off ONE piece of jewelry, just one. I started to do it and even though you aren’t getting the “BOW!” factor, your look will make a turn from crazytown to chic. Still wear that statement cuff, stacked bangles or numerous pairs of pearls, but ONLY wear that. If you must, match it with a very subtle necklace. But honestly, we are all way to fantastic to walk into a room and have people think we are some teeny bopper … or even worse, an over the hill teeny bopper trying to re-live her teeny bopper days.

So as hard as it may be, give one piece of your bling a day off.

Life Sucks In A Strapless Bra

Tag: Jewelry