Fab Giveaway Spotlight-A Living Story

My love for jewelry transcends the sparkly surface. Each piece of bling tells a story...a story of origin, a story of giving, a story of living. Some of my favorite pieces are not necessarily statement making in design or exorbitant in price yet they remain close to my heart pulsated by the attached memories and emotions that unfold and rush in the moment I put them on. And for that and that alone, they remain simply priceless.  
I spotted these diamond floral earrings while aimlessly shopping with J one day. I casually gave a few awwws and continued on. A few days later, a white jewelry box appeared on my pillow with these beauties inside. At the time he was working around the clock setting up a new venture so I was extremely touched he took the time to go back and get them for me. It wasn't a gift for a particular occassion-just a shiny reminder that although his mind was preoccupied, his heart was thinking of me. 
The gold Gara Danielle zodiac necklace and Chan Luu leather and pearl wrap bracelet were birthday gifts from two friends. We were quite close for a number of years as we went to Arcadia High and USC together. Sadly, time and distance set us adrift but these mementos of friendship will forever symbolize years of laughter, unfiltered girl talk, and an undying bond.
 My jade bracelets were gifts from various aunts and uncles. I come from an immigrant family so most of my extended family members still live in Shanghai. Although I see them infrequently, my bracelets serve as a precious reminder of my Chinese heritage, lineage, and ancestry. I wear them proudly. 

{giveaway}

To celebrate the holidays and my love for jewelry, I've partnered with Jewelmint to give away three fabulous pieces of jewelry that I've personally handpicked to three fab readers as I sincerely hope they will become a part of your life story.


{rules}

1. Sign up (free and no obligation) for JewelMint. For a limited time, new members will receive the "buy one get one free" discount.
2. Leave a comment and tell me what's your favorite piece. 
3. Follow me via bloglovin' or google friend connect.
4. {bonus entry} Tweet: Enter the @goodbadandfab and @JewelMint giveaway to win fab jewelry for the holidays! http://bit.ly/VbLy4j
5. {bonus entry} Like me on facebook.

{Giveaway ends December 20 11:59 PST}

 Jewelmint Starstruck ring
 Jewelmint Gold Lamè necklace
 Jewelmint Rock Citrus earrings

{live fabulously}

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Fab Beauty Spotlight-A Shiny Future


I spent almost all of Thanksgiving holiday at my parents' house reliving life before adulthood. The whole family was under one roof as my brother Eric is on winter break from college. How cozy. I spent the first night hanging out with him and his old high school friends trying hard to recapture traces of youthdom. I was doing well. We discussed Apple computers and fashion and New York. Pretty cool, right? But then a major faux pas was made. I got sleepy and decided to call it a night. Instead of saying "later" or even "bye" like a young cool person, I told everyone I was "turning in for the night." Oh the horror once I realized what I'd said. Turning in? I sounded like my grandmother. I spent the next couple of minutes browsing Urban Dictionary trying to brush up on "I'm still hip and with it" lingo.

The next morning, I woke up to the distantly familiar sounds of Mom making breakfast in the kitchen and Dad listening to the Chinese radio station. She was making one of my childhood favorites. Rice balls! Clearly she doesn't know I've stopped eating carbs before 6pm. The rest of the weekend was spent bickering with my brother about things of insignificance, cooking, eating, sleeping, teaching Mom cardio barre, and watching Chinese soap operas. It was the very definition of a lazy weekend but I managed to squeeze in some productive by successfully using the Sally Hansen Salon Gel Polish system.



{The product}
Sally Hansen’s Salon Gel Polish™ is a professional at-home gel system that delivers the salon experience at a great value. Compared to regular nail polish, this gel polish gives you high-gloss, mirror shine color that lasts for up to two weeks without dry time, chipping and smudging. It’s never been so easy to get a salon manicure at home – saving you time and money! Get up to ten gel manicures in a starter kit! The steps are easy, the results are impressive, and the entire process took around fifteen minutes. The system comes with the gel base and top coats, one color polish, cleanser pads, UV lamp, and polish remover.






{Step 1}
Use the cleanser cloth to remove any oil or dirt on nails. This is a super important step as the gel will not adhere to your nails if they are not clean and dry!

{Step 2}
Apply one layer of gel base coat then place nails under UV lamp for thirty seconds to cure. Many other lamps use batteries but the Sally Hansen UV lamp uses an AC adapter which is simply awesome.

{Step 3}
Apply one thin layer of the color gel polish then place nails under UV lamp for thirty seconds to cure. Repeat. I like to cure my nails for an extra thirty seconds to seal the deal.

{Step 4}
Apply one layer of the gel base coat then place nails under UV lamp for thirty seconds to cure.

{Step 5}
Wipe nails with the cleanser cloth and you're done.

{The verdict}
I've had the gel polish on for almost a week and they have not chipped or dulled at all. They truly are mirror shiny! Honestly, Sally Hansen has nailed it with this product.



  
“Disclosure: Compensation was provided by Sally Hansen via Glam Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Sally Hansen”

{live fabulously}

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Fab Giveaway Spotlight-I'm Giving Away One of Oprah's Favorite Things

My holiday spirit officially souled into overdrive while attending the launch party of PopCarts, a holiday shopping pop-up at The Grove featuring a trio of mini wagons carrying favorite wares from Heidi Merrick, Clare Vivier, and ban.do. During the holidays, The Grove is as North Pole as it gets with nightly snowflakes floating, Christmas trees shining, and Santa Claus ho-hoing. Little things like seeing a lit up Christmas tree still moves me and for that I am grateful. It's truly a blessing to experience rhythmic intervals of joy and elation triggered by life's everyday delights. 

I hope to move you with a fabulous holiday beauty giveaway! Dr. Harold Lancer, dermatologist to the stars has created, just in time for the holidays, The Lancer Method limited Edition Luxury Collection. It's the best of the Lancer systematic skincare program re-packaged in incredible Lucite containers. These products are not only one of Oprah's Favorite Things  but the beautiful containers themselves, jars imported from Italy, were actually approved by Oprah herself for this special gift set.



I'm giving one away one gift set (value $300) to one lucky reader.


{GIVEAWAY RULES}


1. Leave a comment and tell me what moves you during the holidays. Include your email address.
2. Subscribe to my blog via Google Subscriber or Bloglovin'.
• 3. Follow @Lancerskincare and @goodbadandfab on Twitter and tweet "I want to win the @Lancerskincare set featured on @goodbadandfab #lancerluxury" http://bit.ly/VhfBLR    
4. {Bonus entry} Like my facebook page

{Giveaway ends December 6, 11:59pm PST}




{live fabulously}

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Personal Style Outfit-A Fall Investment

I'm officially debunking the urban myth that all Asians are good at math. I was born in Shanghai and am as Chinese as they come and yet I shrink away from computations and numbers like it's EVOO and I'm H2O which is probably why I went down the word dense paths of lawyering and blogging. The husband, on the other hand, is fabulous with numbers and loves to talk to me about investments, returns, and dividends. During these one-sided discussions, my mind wanders off into a number-less utopia devoid of currency. Needless to say, I don't retain much information from our talks.  However, over the years, J's business acumen has influenced my decision-making abilities when it comes to shopping as I know just when to purchase investment pieces that will garner the greatest fashion returns.

This Generation Love tweed motorcycle jacket with leather sleeves is a perfect investment piece for fall. The two tone jacket is one of fall's biggest trends and I especially love the duality of the silhouette. It's both structured and a bit flowy which opens up its layering versatility and occasion-adapting agility. My faux leather leggings from Growze is another fall staple piece that I've been wearing nonstop. I prefer faux to real leather as the lining is amazingly soft yet thick enough to keep my legs warm. The twisted asymmetrical seams narrow the width of the hips creating a thinning illusion that's welcoming and necessary.










  
Top: A.L.C. (cheaper option here)
Jacket: Generation Love (similiar hereherehere, and one more)
Pants: c/o Growze (similar here, here, and one more)
Pumps: Manolo Blahnik (almost identical here, here, and a great cheaper option
Purse: Miu Miu (similar here, and cheaper option here)
Rings: David Yurman | Forever 21

I wore this outfit all over town last Saturday. During the day, it made an appearance at my friend's house where we gathered to watch the USC v. UCLA football game. My Trojans lost but we've won twelve out of the last fourteen games so it was more of a pity win for the Bruins. USC supports many charities. After the game, I headed out to the launch party of LAMERCH, a new Silverlake boutique that sits next door to LAMILL, its sister restaurant/cafe. The boutique is cutely curated, carries one-of-a kind items like vintage tea sets and party frocks from d.RA Clothing. It's truly a holiday must stop shop. At the party, I gorged on homemade Snicker bars and cheesecake parfait but made sure to save room for dinner. I then headed to Baco Mercat in Downtown LA where my friends and I shared a delicious meal of flat breads, chicken and biscuits, and open-faced "baco" sandwiches. And unlike my typical "out and about" days, I didn't do a single outfit change as my look took me from day to night. Now that's one fabulous investment!  



{live fabulously}

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Fab Event Spotlight-W Magazine's 40th Anniversary Fete at Saks Beverly Hills



A few weeks ago, I attended a fabulous fete at Saks Fifth Avenue Beverly Hills celebrating W Magazine's 40th anniversary and the book release of W: The First 40 Years. Co-hosted by the venerable Catherine Keener and W's Editor-In-Chief Stefano Tonchi, guests sipped on cocktails and nibbled on small bites while viewing an exhibition showcasing the culmination of forty years of visual masterpieces captured by the lens of W's world-class photographers. I've always admired W Magazine for its visually stunning and artistically inspiring images so it was such a treat to take a walk down memory lane all while standing on the second floor of Saks









As I was nibbling on a mini beef wellington while admiring an intimate portrait of Jackie O from the 70s, my eyes locked with Catherine Keener so I went over and introduced myself. We chatted for a few minutes about my career transition from fashion lawyer to fashion blogger. She was warm, beautiful and thoroughly engaging and encouraged me to continue working for my passion for fashion.


Passion. Fashion. Those were the words of the night. Passion for fashion is W Magazine's past 40 years of dedication to their sartorially enriching, avant garde works of art. Passion for fashion is Saks Fifth Avenue's quest to make all of us look and feel fabulous. And passion for fashion is what I l live for...perhaps for the rest of my life or at the very least, the next 40 years.





*I am a guest blogger for Saks Fifth Avenue and this post was originally featured on the Saks website

{live fabulously}

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