HAPPY HOLIDAYS DOLLS!
Inspired by the super fun and adorable Fall wine girls party I decided to take the baton and host the Winter Wine tasting with a Rich and Skinny twist! I loved the idea of how cost effective it is when every body brings a bottle of wine, and I made a large low carb & low fat Zucchini and Portabella Mushroom Lasagna for everyone. I also made my famous and super easy Italian Cheese Fondue with Green Apples and homemade baked Sweet Potato chips for dipping instead of bread! I will post those recipes soon! The other Rich and Skinny twist was I asked every girl to bring their favorite beauty product under $20 to talk about. Our last wine dinner was filled with a ton of great beauty /skin care/ body care/healthy living talk I knew these ladies had some great secrets to share!
In proud cat lady fashion, lets start with Imogen in her Christmas dress. All the girls dressed up and Imogen didn't want to be undressed. I think she secretly loves to dress up. She takes after her mom. Here she is really lending a valuable hand in Santa's Workshop.
Imogen is going on a Rich & Skinny eating plan herself soon, as she was busting out of a DOGS size Medium dress. I didn't have the heart to tell her the next thing I am buying her is Kitty Spanx.
Since it was also a "Beauty Bash" I picked a Hot pink and Gold Evite so although I am not normally into Pink I got into it for this Fabulous Girly Fete. I used Gold, Pink, Bright Green, and lots of glass, Lucite, chevron and silver.
I hung ornaments from ribbon as well as draped a beautiful thick Gold wire ribbon around the branches of my Branch Chandelier.
I attached small ornaments with gold ornament hangers to each guests wine glass and wrote their name on it as a wine charm to not mix up wine glasses and as a little keepsake gift.
I bought plain wood letters and snowflakes at Hobby Lobby and spray painted them hot pink and silver and hot glued them to a bright green ribbon. We nailed some nails in my brick, tied the ends of the ribbon around then nail and voila! We had a great welcoming and festive sign!
I also made note cards for each guest to record their favorites wines they would like to buy again and the beauty products they wanted to go out and try!
I set up a bar station with BAR letters from Hobby Lobby that are just made of thick paper but are 3 dimensional enough to stand really well on their own. I set up all the girls wine glasses over a gold runner sprinkled with large gold confetti. On my favorite empty pink cat wine bottle I hung number cards on gold ribbon and as each girl arrived she picked a number from the top and that would be the order we tried her wine! We did decide that the Champagne would be the first we enjoyed, because who doesn't want to start a party with Champagne?!
Totally obsessed with the ombre pink and silver and gold Chevron napkins! Still felt festive and holiday like without screaming "Holiday Party".
My favorite purchase for my loft to date, and now the favorite Mascot at any of my parties is my White Horse Head. He gets decked out for every party and people can't get enough pictures with him. Plus he just makes you want to smile!
Here are all the wines lined up ready to be enjoyed!
And here are all my beautiful guests!
Here are the first 4 wines of our tasting
1.Barefoot Bubbly Brut Cuvee
2.Girly Girl 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon- Despite the silly bottle this bottle totally took us all by surprise and was one of all our favorites. Very smoky, with lots of spice, and big flavor. Highly recommend.
3.Santa Julia Vineyards Malbec
4. Beringer Pinot Noir
5.Cupcake 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon
6. Apothic Red 2012 Wine Makers Blend
7. Three Thieves Red Wine California
For an appetizer I made my Italian White Cheese Fondue, which is highly addicting, super easy and inexpensive to make, but instead of using bread to dip I did homemade Sweet Potato Chips and Crispy Green Apples. I also put a bit of Nutmeg and Cinnamon in the fondue for a Holiday touch! Recipe coming soon!
(ignore my the tacky white crock pot, I couldn't find my fabulous all glass fondue pot in my pre party frenzy)
For dinner, I made a Low Carb Zucchini and Portabella Lasagna. This means there were no noodles at all in the recipe to contribute needless carbs and calories. This makes the end dish not cut and present in as clean slices as real lasagna but the flavor was great. Posting that soon as well!
Now for the best part! Everyones BEAUTY Must Have's Under $20! I was amazed to see how many girls recommended and vouched for the same product! I marked those with an "*".
- LOREAL SUBLIME BRONZE SUNLESS TANNER $10.99 WAL MART
Who tan's in tanning beds anymore?! No one. Wrinkly leathery skin and Cancer suck. So spray tanning is the new acceptable norm. I go to a booth for big occasions but since that is about $27 a pop, I swear by this Sunless tanning Spray I have on hand at all time. I have used it probably close to 7 years and love it. It dries quickly, applies in a super fine even mist and doesn't smell that horrendous to your significant other that has to sleep next to you.
-*VINYLUX WEEKLY TOP COAT $7.99
This product is suppose to be a beauty life changer. Apparently you can kiss your pricey Shellac mani's goodbye because this magic black bottle will give you the pretty much the same results. They make polish as well, but our reviewer uses this on top of whatever polish she is wearing and swears it helps it stay super shiny, and chip free for over a week.
-*REVLON PHOTO READY CONCEALER $8.99
Many girls at the party love this concealer, including me! It is super creamy yet provides great blend able coverage without looking cakey. It last a long time as well so you get a great bang for your buck . They offer 6 shades that seem to match most skin tones perfectly.
BATH & BODY WORKS TRUE BLUE SPA
BLACKBERRY PURIFYING PEEL OFF MASK- $12.00
My friend said that this is her favorite peel off mask. Easy too apply, smells nice and does the job at a great price!
-EOS ULTRA MOISTURIZING SHAVE CREAM $3.49 TARGET
By the makers of those all so popular chapstick balls, comes a Shave Cream by the same brand. If you like a good thick foam to shave this isn't for you. I use to be that way, but have extremely dry skin that would make my legs super itchy after I shaved. I bought this after our beauty night in the Vanilla fragrance and really love it. Another perk is you can use it on DRY skin to shave as well! Last minute date night? Throw your leg up on the sink and get to work, no need to jump in the shower again. Big fan and only slightly more expensive then the other shave creams out there.
-LOREAL VOLUMINOUS FALSE FIBER LASHES- $10.99
I swear by Loreal Mascara, although I know some people do not get the same results that keep me going back to it. For me, I have naturally long eyelashes but they are blonde and thin. This makes them super long and so thick I think they look fake. I also apply 3 coats, because the fibers need to latch on to each other to build length. I love the results and my lashes never look tarantula like.
-*CLINIQUE DRAMATICALLY DIFFERENT MOISTURIZING LOTION $14.50
Bringing back to the old school but good products never go away! My friend thinks this is the best face cream she has used and although it is thick, it never feels greasy or clogs pores. It was awesome watching other girls chime in that their moms swear by this lotion as well, so something great must be in this bottle! It can get pricey for the larger sizes but the smaller size which is perfect for your makeup bag is surprisingly affordable at around $14.
-JOHN FREIDA SHEER BLONDE CONTROLLED LIGHTENING SPRAY $10.99
My girlfriend with gorgeous naturally California-esq blonde hair loves this lightening spray in between highlights. She said that it works so well that in the summer she is able to go months between professional touch ups!
-Elf Eyelid Primer in Sheer wait for it..... $1.00 One. freaking. DOLLAR!!!!!!
This product hands down took the prize for shock factor as for as a great product, that is awesome that no one, could believe costs ONE DOLLAR. Normally Elf is available at Target and Walmart and most items are $3.00 (still a huge steal) but $1 really sent us into a frenzy. We passed it around, tried it on, played with it, squealed, asked "One Dollar?!" about 20 times, but yes, this product rocks. Buy it , you won't regret it. It also has a nice subtle shimmer to it that makes it perfect to wear alone as eyeshadow or to highlight your cupid's bow.
This is your cupid's bow -
Photo credit: The Red Apple Lipstick Blog- A Fab blog of Gluten and Non-Toxic Make-Up
-NEUTROGENA RAPID WRINKLE REPAIR MOISTURIZER SPF 30- $19.99
I have been using this face cream for over a year now and really love it. Not to mention I keep reading lots of famous Dermatologist recommend it as one of the best over the counter Retinol creams on the market. It never has gotten my skin too dry, or caused redness and I love the fact it has SPF 30.
-PONDS COLD CREAM $4.50
Another old school classic, and we are talking OLD SCHOOL - we're talking circa 1930's- see add below...
I hope you enjoyed reading about the new wines and beauty products we found while we drank way too much wine, laughed way too much and were in girly heaven. I would love to know what your other favorite wines and beauty products are!
Here are some more photos from the night!
Enjoy!
xo,
LMS
