I love red carpet season...

It's truly the most wonderful time of the year in fashion, in my opinion. Red Carpet Season has begun with a bang, and Sunday night had every media outlet buzzing. Whether they were talking about Jodie Foster's speech, the comedy genius of Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, or the big wins and losses, no one could ignore the red carpet fashions of the night. I could not let this event go unnoticed either, and I wanted to share my top 5 best dressed list of the night.

My best dressed of the night has to go to the newly single Amy Poehler

Girl was SPOT ON  last night. Since Amy was hosting the gig, there would be costume changes galore through out the night, so why not do something a little different for the red carpet. This pantsuit by Stella McCartney is gorgeous. It fits Amy so well, and with a daring plunge in the jacket, it was just an extra bit of sexy.


Katharine McPhee

This look was the perfect amount of sexy in my opinion. With such a plunging neckline AND a slit in the skirt, she doesn't seem to be showing off TOO much. Theyskens' Theory really worked to balance this out, and show off Katharine's tiny waistline all at the same time. With her hair up and some simple shoes, Katharine McPhee placed everyone's attention on where it should be in that gown.

Julianne Hough

This dress is to die for. I always seem to like Julianne Hough in more feminine looks, and this gown by Monique Lhuillier did not disappoint. She worked glam like there was no tomorrow, and she accomplished it. With all of that glitz and glitter on top, Julianne decided to forgo jewelry and let the dress speak for itself. Add the hair being up, and she surely was a sight to be seen Sunday night.

Jessica Alba

Can I just jump on my soapbox now and rant about the color of this gown by Oscar de la Renta? Jessica Alba hardly ever disappoints on a red carpet, and it doesn't help that she looks as pristine as ever even when she has no make up on and is running her kids around town, but this color just did it for me. It looks amazing on her skin tone, and it helped her stand out among the sea of black, white and red dresses that were everywhere last night. That necklace was the absolute gem (no pun intended) on top of this look, and she had absolutely everyone dying over this look Well done.

Finally, I must give a nod to Nicole Richie

image credit: Just Jared

Again, I must say the color of this gown did give her a leg up in my book Like I said before, neutrals were big at the Golden Globes this year, and I am pretty sure this is one of 2 blue dresses I saw last night (totally loved Lucy Liu's dress too). Nicole Richie has become a style icon for many, and her fashion designs have become a household name. This dress by Naeem Khan is stunning. The sleeves were a wonderful change of pace, the color was gorgeous, and with her tan, I just could not look away. Maybe it's because this is reminiscent of the Elie Saab gown that Blair Waldorf wore when she married Chuck Bass, maybe it's because I do have a love of blue gowns. Either way, I loved this more than you will ever know.

Well there you have it. I am so excited for the rest of the award shows, and I will be camping out for the Oscars before too long. Who was on your best dressed, or even your worst dressed list? Are you excited for more red carpet events? Let me know down below!

Here's to a wonderful season of fashion!
Love, Hannah Leigh

Standout Products of 212

I cannot believe that 2012 is already over. Making it to 2013 means that the world has yet again made it through an apocalypse scare, my best friend is getting married this summer and it is the year of the snake. I have a few resolutions to set forth this year, such as washing my make up brushes more regularly, actually running instead of pining to be one of those girls that can run around for what seems like miles and miles, and to start eating healthy on my own.

With the start of a new year comes the release of brand new products from all of the beauty companies, so before I start doing reviews on the new products, I wanted to give an honorable mention to all of my standout products of 2012. I buy a lot of makeup, and I enjoy almost all of it, but as with everything, a few shining stars always break through and make their presence known. So, without further adieu, here are my favorite products over the last year.

• Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch Highlighting Concealer

As a fair skinned girl, I can rock some pretty intense dark circles under my eyes and I am always on the lookout for a good under-eye concealer to help combat this. This has been my saving grace as far as drugstore concealers come. I have tried practically every concealer in the drugstore (true story) and this is the only one I have ever finished, let alone repurchased. I use the shade Light because I need some coverage as well as highlighting, but I have used the shade Radiant to go on top of my MAC Pro Long-wear, which I wear when I am going with a full glam face of makeup. This Maybelline I can wear with only a little powder on top and I look good to go all day. It does crease a little on me, but I have some lines already set in my under eye area due to longtime wear of contacts and glasses. This is my holy grail concealer and I don't know what I would do without it anymore.

• Maybelline Volum' Express the Mega Plush Mascara

 I have already written one review on this mascara, but I had to include this in my favorites for this past year.
 This mascara is nothing like I have ever used before. While it doesn't give a false lash look by any means, it gives my eyelashes a very natural look, and the feel of them after I use this is incredible. I am so used to using mascaras that make my lashes brittle and stiff, but these are almost pet-able (almost). This mascara feels so great on my lashes, and when used over any of my other mascaras, which I do quite often, it gives amazing volume. Definitely worth picking it up, if you have somehow not tried it yet.

•  Wet N Wild Mega Last Nail Polish

If you haven't heard any kind of rave review on this nail polish yet, welcome to my soap box. I cannot even count how many of these I have off of the top of my head right now. If I ever need a new nail polish, this is the first display I look at to see if they have what I'm looking for. Anytime a limited edition collection pops up, I scour it like I was looking for treasure, which I kind of am (beauty treasure). This nail polish rivals my Essie and OPI nail polishes, and the staying power is truly incredible. I can go on and on about this polish, in every single color, but this would be a very long blog. For $1.99 a bottle, you can't go wrong with any of it.

• Wet N Wild Mega Last Lipstick

These lipsticks are like the unsung heroes of the drugstore. If you haven't ever tried these, I highly suggest them. These lipsticks are usually about $1.99, come in an array of colors from nudes to dark purple and reds, and are a drugstore MATTE FINISH LIPSTICK. I always have such a hard time finding a truly matte lipstick at the drugstore, but these never fail me. The pigmentation on these is out of this world, and there are more than a few MAC dupes in the collection, including dupes for Viva Nicki, St. Germain, Rebel, Pink Nouveau, Russian Red and Creme Cup. These lipsticks are a steal for the price, and I always end up picking up one more that I don't have anytime I go to my drugstore to look for practically anything.

• Revlon Lip Butters

I am pretty sure these were a late 2011 release, and I acquired a few back when they first came out, but I had to include these, because they are so life changing when it comes to lip color. I have picked up a few shades throughout the year, and I have not regretted any yet, and probably never will. Creme Brulee is a wonderful nude, especially for a girl that doesn't care for nudes much. Cherry Tart is my go to red lip, especially in the spring and summer. The way they feel is incredible and the way they perform on the lips is just as impressive. While on the pricey side at about $7 a piece, they have lasted me for a good long while, and I will repurchase any of them if I ever run into that problem.

And for my grande finale...

• Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette

If you are interested in makeup in any form or fashion and you haven't heard of this god-send, I don't know where you have been for the last year. I do know for a fact that this was a 2011 release, but I didn't acquire it until 2012 and I absolutely HAD to include this. Since I have gotten it, I haven't used any other eye shadows in my collection. The quality is incredible, the colors are perfect, and I have not had any kind of problem utilizing this palette for any occasion yet. I had a hard time trying to decide between the Naked and Naked 2 Palette when I was making my decision, but I prefer cool tones over warm tones on my eyes. Both of them are beautiful and I am so impressed with the shadows now that I have them to play with. This is my favorite item I have gotten this year, and I would buy it again if I ever have to, but I don't anticipate hitting pan on any of the shadows any time soon. The price tag of $50 is a little scary, and I must admit that that was a deciding factor with my holding off on acquiring the palette, but it is completely worth the money, and I have gotten $50 worth of use out of it already, and I have barely scratched the surface.

Thank you for stopping by the blog today, and be sure to let me know what your stand out products were this year. What changed your make up and beauty life this year? What are you looking forward to this coming year? I am always looking for new products to try out!

Personal Tidbits
- We got snow on Christmas Day here in Texas! It was so gorgeous. I hadn't ever seen snow on Christmas before, so even in my 20s, I was awestruck.
- Starting from base level when running really makes you see how out of shape you are. I hadn't run in almost a year when I started back up again, and quickly remembered why I had stopped before. Busting your knee when your running is zero fun sir. But I have a brand new knee strap waiting for me today, so hopefully if it doesn't continue to rain, I will be able to get back out and keep building my endurance. 
- I am ready for the spring to get here. So many new exciting adventures and preparations will pick up starting in about March, and I am so excited. 

Thanks again for stopping by! Y'all are awesome!
Love, Hannah Leigh

And the color of the year for 2013 is...

EMERALD!

I, for one am so excited for this color. I think that emerald green is such an interesting color to try to work in day to day. It's such a bright color, yet rich and deep. It's simply gorgeous. So. In honor of the reveal of this wonderful color of the year for 2013, I wanted to share a few ways to work it into your wardrobe this coming year.

Nail Polish

As my very good friend, Chelsea, inspired me with on Instagram recently, green nail polish will be a trend here soon. Boy was she right. Pictured above is Emerald Sparkle by China Glaze, and it is beautiful. I am currently wearing a more traditional green by Sinful Colors in HD Nails, but I have topped it with my China Glaze Hunger Games Electrify to give it more of a holiday/Christmas-y feel. I love the look of DARK green nails, and Emerald Sparkle is going straight to the top of my list for next to purchase.

Colored Jeans

If you can't tell by now, I am a huge fan of colored pants, and this emerald color has not changed my opinion in the slightest. Paired with a white top and some gold jewelry, green pants look so dignified and chic. Green pants would be a wonderful way to transition the colored denim trend into the spring, and would be versatile enough to bring back in the fall. You can throw on your brown riding boots with this look, any kind of high heel, and even sandals in the right weather. This is probably going to be my favorite way to work this color this coming year.

Coat

Shown above is the lovely Blair Waldorf's choice in green coat (SIDEBAR: 2 things; a: I love me some Gossip Girl and b: Blair has rocked a green coat more than once in the length of the show). I know that it is winter for most people in the country, unless you live in Texas like me and don't even need to know where your coat is just yet, and I think this would be the most immediate and dashing way to wear emerald this winter. You can throw this coat on for a pop of color just about anywhere, and it is a wonderful way to brighten up any dark winter outfit. I love it.

What are some ways you are going to wear emerald this coming year? Are you as excited about this color as I am? Leave a comment below and tell me! I love to hear from you guys! Thanks for reading!

Dreaming of an emerald city tonight
Love, Hannah Leigh

The only reason I like the season change is I get to go shopping...

Here in Texas, Fall is finally upon us. For many, this is a time for rejoicing that the temperature has finally dropped. I, on the other hand, believe I live in my own infinite summer. I don't normally go out shopping for fall and winter clothes, I tend to try to stretch my cutest summer items through the cold, and then resurface them sans over-pieces when it warms up again. Not the smartest move. 

So this year, I decided I wanted to pick up a few items to create a decent fall and winter wardrobe. I wanted to share a few of my favorites that I have picked up, and show you how you can still be trendy on a budget. 

Boots!

I love me some boots in the fall. The last few years, I have found myself living in boots when it starts to get cold outside. Over the years, I have collected both "Ugg" style boots and slouchy faux suede boots for the season. This year I found myself coveting the more riding style boots (or as I put it, the classy boots) that I saw everywhere, and especially at church  (I am well aware of the irony of coveting things I see on women at church). I found myself becoming very picky of how I wanted them to look. I preferred equestrian boots over motorcycle boots, and a very specific shade of brown. BUT I did end up finding the perfect boots for my ideal

These are the Demi Wedge Leatherette Boot from Wet Seal. I bought these after considering it for about a week (I had to have an outside influence tell me to go get them and stop getting flustered about it). I have worn these practically every day since I bought them, and I built a whole travel wardrobe around wearing these boots when I went out of town for the Thanksgiving holiday. These are great over black leggings (my personal favorite), skinny jeans, dresses, tights, what have you. I got these on a Friends and Family sale the weekend before Black Friday, but they are normally $34.50. Honestly the quality is great, and I think they are worth every penny I spent on them.

BONUS JONAS HINT

I also bought a pair of cream leg warmers to go under these at the same time I bought the boots because I have a skinnier calf and they can sometimes look weird on my chicken legs. Best idea ever. I never wear them with the legwarmers, and I love the look it gives them. Kind of a boot sock without a full length sock.

Sweaters! 

Living in Texas, it never really comes to mind for me to wear a full out sweater, but I wanted to get one or two, because I love the look of a sweater and leggings and boots. Being tall (have I mentioned I'm almost 6 foot tall, and I have an incredibly long waist and normal length legs?) it's difficult to find a sweater that is actually long enough to wear with leggings and cover all my ladybits, so I must settle on regular length sweaters every once in a while. ANYWAY. I was at TJ Maxx one random night, because that's when I get my most productive shopping done, and I found the most amazing wonderful beautiful sweater I ever did see. 

It's black and gold stripes, and the gold stripes have sequins in them. I can't express my love for this sweater, and I have gotten nothing but compliments on it. Being a southern lady, sequins sing nothing but sweet lullabies into my eyes and into my heart. I've worn this out on a Saturday seeing a movie and running errands, I have worn this to the office on a more casual day. I don't care what you say about sequins, they're always appropriate. 

Colored/Printed Jeans!

I almost forgot about my favorite find of the season! I cannot believe that! Okay, so I love the oxblood trend. The color burgundy/maroon/oxblood/deep red/wine holds a special place in my heart, and always has. It's the perfect fall and winter color. But I digress. So forever, I was on the search for a pair of oxblood pants, and I had always considered getting a pair of darker palette printed jeans. Well, Wet Seal came through for me once again, and I found the most wonderful pair of BOTH colored and printed pants.

These are oxblood brocade printed jeggings. They are much deeper in person, this picture was taken on Instagram after all and I was trying to really emphasize the print, and they are beautiful. These aren't on the website anymore, but I believe they were $29.50 full price, which I got half off because it was during a sale of half off the entire store. These have been worn absolutely anywhere and everywhere. My favorite way to wear them is with a Chambray top, a white scarf, these jeans and some black flats. My other outfit in my brain involves some combat boots to put a sweet edge on them, but those do not exist in my closet just yet.

There you have it. These are my large finds as far as my trendy things go. Summer still is trying to linger, both in my wardrobe and in the weather, and I have nothing but adventures planned to continue my shopping. I have two three things on my wish list for the season, but alas, I have yet to find them. I'm still on the lookout for a good pair of black combat boots, a leopard print sheer scarf and a black motorcycle jacket. I've looked and looked, but the search will continue to go on until I find something that I am willing to get excited about like these that I have mentioned so far.

What are your favorite items for the fall/winter season? Anything you're still looking for? And if you have any suggestions on where to find my last lingering ideas, let me know! Any suggestion is always appreciated!

Here's to fashion trends!

Love, Hannah Leigh.

Let's talk make up...

Hello lovelies,

So today, I wanted to do my very first make up post, and to commemorate this grand occasion, I wanted to talk about my very favorite make up product category out there, MASCARA. This idea came to me while I was getting ready this morning for work, and found myself being incredibly tedious with my mascara, even though that is literally all I am wearing today.

I, my friends, am a mascara FIEND. I have a ridiculous collection of half used, but all needed mascaras. They each do something different for me, and I know exactly which ones to pull out for whatever lash look I am wanting to go for. So, I thought I would share a few of my favorites with all of you.

My all time favorite mascara is the L'Oreal Voluminous Carbon Black Million Lashes.

I could swear by this mascara and have repurchased this many times over the last 2 years or so. This mascara is the blackest of the black, and it is a dryer formula than most. I have pretty average lashes, not too many not too little, not too short not too long. This is perfect for me. I get all of the definition I could want plus volume to boot. In my opinion, with this mascara, I could never go wrong.

Running a close second behind Million Lashes is L'Oreal Carbon Black Double Extend.

 The Carbon Black mascaras are seriously the darkest black mascaras I have ever tried. I cannot even explain how wonderful that is to me (I don't care if I'm a blonde, I love me some blackest black mascara). This mascara is no exception. The 2 step process is pretty fantastic, and this combined with the Million Lashes is pretty much my holy grail. The primer is the reason I use this. I love to have extreme length to my lashes, and this helps my lashes out big time. I always add the primer to my lashes first, let it set, then run my Million Lashes through before adding the black from the Double Extend (Note: Depending on how I want my lashes to look that day, I sometimes reverse the use of those two for more definition and less volume). This mascara gives me wonderful length thanks to the primer, and fantastic volume from the black mascara.

My other notable mascara from my collection is the newest addition, and if you read any beauty blog or watch any beauty guru on YouTube, you've definitely heard of this one.

Maybelline Mega Plush Volum Express.

Let me just say that I do, in fact, love this mascara, and I love what it does for my lashes. BUT  I have to say, because I have seen negative reviews on it too, it is ALL about how you use that brush. The brush on this mascara is a triangle. There are 3 sides with long bristles and also 3 sides with shorter bristles. The short bristles is where all of my love for this mascara comes from. When I want to go for a truly natural look, I use the long bristles and I'm done. When I want to add some legitimate volume to my lashes, I get those short bristles into my lashes, and I never hate the results. And the formula. My goodness, it is so wonderful. It really does make your lashes soft and touchable, not stiff and brittle. I think I read in Cosmo one time that you should use a soft mascara so your boyfriend can touch your soft lashes. Now, I don't know about all of that, but I know if I touch my lashes and they're soft, I love the feeling.

So, as you can see, I love me some thick, long, dark lashes, and I pretty much rock that look on a daily basis. Mascara has always been one of my favorite things to buy, and I get so excited when I see a new brightly colored tube hit the shelf at wherever I am at the time. It's a self control issue. I am totally aware.

Thanks so much for stopping by my blog, and if you have any requests for things you would like for me to write about, feel free to let me know!

'Til Next Time,
Love, Hannah Leigh

Photos Courtesy of L'Oreal USA and Maybelline USA

Long time, no see

Hello lovelies,

Sorry for the severe hiatus from the blogging universe. With life's changes, blogging just was not the first thing to come to my mind. So let me catch you up.

In May, I graduated from University, and when we last spoke I was trying to figure out what I was going to do with my life. I was still living in my same house in my college town, and I was trying to figure out where the next move was going to come from. I ended up in the good ol' town of Abilene, TX and worked a couple of different jobs until I settled into an office in a high rise, doing a little bit of everything. So it seems that, at least for right now, I have found something to do with my life.

If anyone has ever heard of Abilene, they probably know that there is quite a large Air Force base in this city (praise the Lord for Blues on Mondays). Since moving to Abilene, I have seen my fair bit of Airmen wandering through out the town, and I have seemed to find myself one of my own. That's right. After 22 years of saying I would never be strong enough to be a military SO, I am one. And it has honestly been one of the best experiences of my life so far. So there's that.

Other than that, I have just been trying to get my life to settle some, and hopefully be able to slow down these days. My best friend, Sami, deserves a special shout out in this post because she is the one that alerted me that I had abandoned my post and I needed to get back into blogging. So I will.

I have a few posts planned out to be up in a few days, and honest to God, whenever I figure out how to add pictures into these posts (sorry, I'm still new to the scene), this blog will be up and running.

Until next time,
Love, Hannah Leigh.

About Yours Truly

Hello beautys! I know this post is a little bit later than I had planned but life has been hectic over the last week. I have been helping people move, started a new job, and have been trying to get my life figured out now that I am a college graduate. Anyway, this post is to let everyone know a little bit more about me and the person that is trying to share her opinion. I have come up with some questions over the last week that I feel are important to know me as a person, and what I am going to be discussing over the course of this blog. So, lets get this started.

*Name: Hannah Leigh
*Age: 22
*Location: Texas, USA
*Industry: Up until a few weeks ago, I was a professional student, but since I graduated, I have been working retail trying to figure out what I am going to do with my life.
*Degree: I have a Bachelor's of Science in Sociology with a minor in Political Science
*Relationship Status: Single
*Favorite Makeup Brands: I love drugstore make up, due to the fact that a college student budget doesn't always allow room for high end make up brands. My favorites are ELF, Wet n Wild and Rimmell.
*Favorite Recipes: My favorite recipes are always snack and dessert recipes. I always find some fantastic ones on Pinterest. My favorites are Betty Crocker's Honey Bun Cake and Eagle Brand Milk Magic Cookie Bars. (I will link at a later date)
*Favorite TV: Glee, Secret Life of the American Teenager, and a lot of reality television. I also enjoy watching the History Channel, Comedy Central and Cartoon Network's Adult Swim.
*Favorite Music: Classic Rock, Texas Country, John Mayer, Zac Brown Band, Crizzly, anything else you can think of I probably listen to.
*Favorite Movie: I'm only going to pick one, but I think my favorite might be Freaknik: The Musical.
*Beauty Inspirations: I only got into make up and hair because of watching YouTube and looking at other blogs. The one I recommend to absolutely anyone that's looking for ideas is Beauty Broadcast on both Blogger and YouTube. I also subscribe to Glamourista16 and LetsMakeItUp1. They're great to look at for younger girls and LetsMakeItUp1 is great for any kind of hair tutuorial that you can find. Side note: if you're looking for something wonderful to watch on YouTube and you haven't seen any of Jenna Marbles stuff yet, I don't know what you are doing with your life, I really don't. What Hip Hop Songs Taught Me is the funniest thing I have ever watched.

So there is a little insight into who I am. I hope you enjoyed it and be looking out for an upcoming blog on how I have transformed my desk area in my room of my house to a vanity area. It was my graduation present to me. If there is anything else you are interested in knowing about me, feel free to ask in the comments section under it and I will do my best to answer anything you're interested in.

Peace&Love.