christiexlee: Review

Autumn: Vampy Vibes

September 23, 2016

Hello to my lovely readers!

By the time this post is up, I’m most likely going to be on a plane to Asia. I didn’t want to leave my little blog unattended so I will have a few scheduled posts coming up for the next two weeks! I will be visiting Hong Kong, Macau, Tokyo, and Guangzhou with my family. (Expect a future post about my travels!)

Autumn is officially upon us, and I’m super excited for this season! Autumn means brisk cold walks in the evening, stomping around on crunchy leaves, and last but not least: rocking beautiful wine & berry toned colors! For this week’s post, I wanted to do a mini review on Essie’s “Bahama Mama” nail color and MAC’s Velvetease Lip Pencil in “Velvet Teen.”

I typically don’t change up my makeup routine too much from day to day, but I do like to swap out my lippies and rotate my nail polish colors. In anticipation for the fall, I looked through my makeup stash for anything that would help me channel my inner “Vampire Goddess” and that’s when I stumbled upon Essie’s “Bahama Mama” nail color along with MAC’s Velvetease Lip Pencil in Velvet Teen :P

I’m really enjoying this Essie nail color! It’s a gorgeous jewel toned burgundy with a purple undertone (although it does look a little more red in my photo). I’ve never had a problem with Essie polishes, as they usually have great color payoff and dry beautifully! I also think this color pairs quite beautifully with gold rings and bracelets! All in all, I would highly recommend this color and think it would go well with most skin tones :)

I had purchased MAC’s Velvet Teen during last year’s holiday season but only remember wearing the color once before I thought I had lost it. It turns out it was hidden in one of my sock drawers…?! (How odd! How did it even get in there?!) After wearing the color for a few days, I’ve come to the realization that although the color is pretty, it’s extremely drying, as with most matte lip colors, and somewhat difficult to apply. I think this may have been one of the contributing factors as to why I so easily forgot about this lippie when I thought I had lost it!

I ended up apply my Kat Von D Everlasting Liquid Lipstick in Exorcism over the MAC Lip Pencil, and it helped ever so slightly to restore some of the moisture back to my lips! It also helped with the patchiness of the lip pencil. Overall I think the MAC lip pencil is great color but works better when used in conjunction with something like a gloss or lipstick. I wouldn’t recommend wearing the product on it’s own, unless you have amazingly smooth and moisturized lips :)

What’re some of your favorite fall colors to wear? Let me know in the comments below!

Fashion

Mini Review: Givenchy Small Antigona!

September 9, 2016

Hey all, happy Friday!!

For this week’s post, I wanted to do a mini review of the Givenchy Small Antigona purse. I’ve been using this bag everyday for about 3 months now and wanted to share my thoughts and opinions with you all!

First of all, this bag will always hold a special place in my heart! This is my very first “big girl” designer hand bag purchase. After landing my first full time job and working for a whole year, I decided it was time for the big splurge! I wanted my first big purchase to be something that would be practical enough to use on a everyday basis.

After doing some research and talking to my friends and co-workers, one of my co-workers suggested the Antigona bag. Everything about this bag was perfect! I really liked the shape and size of the bag. Unfortunately, most places I checked didn’t have the bag in the color and texture that I wanted available in stores, so I decided to order the bag online. I currently own the Small Antigona in the color black with the Sugar Leather.

Without further ado, here are some of the Pros and Cons of the bag:

Pros:

My Ideal Size!

I try not to carry too much inside my bag on a day-to-day basis because i don’t like lugging around a heavy purse, but it’s always nice to have the option if you ever needed to. I can easily fit a small water bottle and my iPad inside this bag with no issues!

Structure

I was a little skeptical when I first received the bag in the mail because of how structured it was. It seemed very hard and rough, which was something I was completely not used to. Now that I’ve been using the bag for a few months, I actually really like how the bag will remain in its shape no matter how full or empty it is, as some purses tend to look really flat or saggy if you don’t fill it up. The handles and straps on this bag are also really well made. I never have to worry that the handles or straps will fall apart on me, even on the days where I decide to throw a small water bottle, my lunch, and iPad into it :P

Sugar Leather

If you decide to purchase this bag, I would highly recommend buying it in the sugar leather, especially if you very accident prone! I tend to bump and run into things all the time! (Why am I such a clutz?!!) Since the sugar leather is very tough and sturdy, I don’t have too many issues with my bag getting scratched up or left behind with unsightly marks!

Cons:

Strap Length

My #1 woe about this bag is the strap. I feel like the strap that comes with the bag is a pretty awkward length. It’s too short to actually use in a “satchel” style (aka my favorite way to carry a purse!) The strap also doesn’t detach from the bag either, which I thought was a little unusual. Personally I think the strap serves as more of an aesthetic than function, but whenever my hands are full or I’m just being downright lazy, I’ll still use the strap regardless :) However, the strap does drape really nicely when you hold it by the two handles.

Structure

Again this is something that I personally don’t mind, but I have seen some other reviews where people mention how they don’t like how the boxy/bulky the bag looks when it lays again their body.

Price Point

This bag is definitely a bit of a splurge so I urge you to check it out in person before buying it! I will say that the bag is very well made in terms of the stitching, lining, and overall design, but I can see how the price point might deter some from buying!

Overall, I’m still very pleased with my first designer handbag purchase and am probably not going to be on the market for a new one anytime soon! So tell me, what was your first handbag purchase? And which one of your bags are your favorite?!