I love silk scarves. Not only do I love to collect these beauties, but I also love styling them in different ways and love to wear them. Whether I tie it on my handbag, in my hair or around my neck, I think silk scarves make the perfect addition to just about any look. For these reasons I thought it would be fun to share some of the top ways I style my silk scarves.

It’s nearly winter and this means 2 things: coats & layers. No cold season will ever be complete without the Coat Trend talk. Ever!
 
Chances are that you own a black coat. Chances are you get sick of wearing that same black coat every single cold winter’s day, and chances are your black coat might be a little sick of you.

In the words of Aretha Franklin;

R-E-S-P-E-C-T find out what it means to me
R-E-S-P-E-C-T, take care, T-C-B.

You know what they say, a little restraint and discipline never hurts anybody and when suiting up one has to be femme fatale. Is this the reason behind the popular tuxedo dress trend? Does the fashion world want us to be poised, fierce, powerful and f***ing amazing?

Intimidating...

As the sun sets more earlier and my perfect idea of "going out" involves being snug on the sofa, watching a romantic comedy while sipping on a cup of tea is heaven, but never the less when I do go out I want to feel and look glamorous and warm! One thing missing in my winter wardrobe was a white knit.

A winter wardrobe wouldn't be complete without at least one oversized chunky knit to bundle up in. Especially since it takes only the coziest sweater to stave off the wintry winds. White knits has been the ultimate winter staple for seasons on end and is particularly a must-have because it doubles as the absolute transitional piece when the cold frost finally melts.

Hello My Fellow Fashionistas,

"Ageing gracefully" can be a frightening figure of speech for many and the cosmetic counter is covered with "anti-ageing" creams, serums and with Botox freely available like getting milk from the supermarket, their must be a more natural way to "age gracefully." 

Well, their is!! Its called facial yoga. Yes facial yoga! We have all heard of yoga...but not facial yoga. Right? Well their are an array of books, You Tube videos (quite amusing) and even a App for this topic. This form of exercise for the face claims to maintain your beauty naturally. We obviously have muscles in our face (duh) but 99.9% chance we don't use half of them and facial yoga is good for toning the muscles in our face and neck.

I have been doing facial yoga for a few weeks now and can feel the difference, It releases tension, tones the facial muscles and I also get a laugh or two when mimicking the poses. 

For me anything natural is good. As natural-living aficionados, Botox is at the top of our toxic no-no list. It is literally like a venom. Additionally, most anti-aging creams contain paraffins, mineral oil, heavy fragrances and other undesirable ingredients. Facial yoga is 100% natural and without harmful chemicals. No needles, no second guessing whether a “youthful glow” is worth the toxins or not. 

Give it a try and let me know what you think.

Just a heads up...its probably best to do this within the 4 walls of your home....let's just say facial yoga while driving is a no-no as you will get a few interesting looks from other motorists. 

Always With Style,


xoxo


A.
La Moda Stylist

DAILY FACIAL YOGA EXERCISE

#1 – Smiling Fish Face
The Smiling Fish assists in toning and lifting the cheeks. Form a traditional fish face with your lips. Then, smile. Both actions should occur simultaneously. Repeat 5 times.

#2 – Marilyn
Named for the infamous Marilyn Monroe, this pose is geared towards creating firmer, fuller lips. Simply pucker your lips, press them into your hand, and blow a kiss. Repeat.

#3 – Baby Bird 
This pose is meant to tone neck muscles and prevent sagging, double chins. First, turn your head to the right. Tip your chin upward and press the tip of the tongue to the roof of the mouth. Next, smile, then swallow. Repeat for center and left side.

#4 – Satchmo
This pose was named after horn players who store a lot of air in their cheeks! Grab a big breath and puff the breath from cheek to cheek. Repeat until you run out of air, 5 to 10 seconds. Repeat the sequence 10 times.

#5 -Temple Dancer 
Temple Dancer focuses on warding off crow’s feet and sagging. While keeping the rest of your face motionless, open your eyes wider than usual. Look slowly left, then back to center. Look slowly right, then back to center. Repeat 10 times.

#6 – Buddha
This pose is meant to reset the face into a state of smooth calm. Simply close your eyes and smile very slightly. Be sure to relax the rest of the face completely to achieve maximum calm.

#7 – Lion Face, Part I
Inhale through your nose, make fists and squeeze all your facial muscles…

#8 – Lion Face, Part II
Now exhale through your mouth, stick out your tongue, roll your eyes up and open your hands. Repeat three times.

Busy.

Is the one word I would use if you ask me about my lifestyle. So the last thing I want to do in the morning is spend hours and hours trying to fix my hair from that so called "beauty sleep" I had the night before. 
It's every girls dream to go to bed and magically wake up the next morning with "perfect hair." The fact of the matter is that it's highly unlikely!!  But sometimes beauty sleep needs a little extra help.

Over the years I have learnt how to skip that morning blow dry, with using some small tips and tricks, while getting that much needed "beauty sleep."

So say goodbye to long hours in the bathroom and hello to a few extra margaritas by the sunset with friends at the end of the day. With a few extra minutes up your sleeve who knows what you could achieve.

Try these tricks & tips before you go to bed tonight!!

Time: 3 minutes

My all time favourite!! This trick is amazing. After you have washed your hair and dried it, add some Moroccan oil and Argon oil to your hair. I also use John Frida Frizz Ease.  Simply twirl your hair before you go to bed and wake up with beautiful beach waves.

Time: 3 minutes

Another favourite!! 

Start by grabbing a 2 inch section of your hair at the front. Lift it up and loop it back toward your face, and tuck it into the headband. Repeat this motion on the next piece of hair, grabbing overlapping sections of your hair and continue around the rest of your head until you reach the opposite of the front. Then go to bed. Wake up and remove headband. Brush through your hair with your fingers for bigger waves and finish with a mist of hairspray.

Time: 1 minute

Not sure about the rest of you girls out there, but my number 1 issue when I wake up in the morning is FRIZZ!! Yes it's a constant battle!! 

So if fighting frizz is your morning hair struggle, then this tip is for you!! Before going to bed, smooth some serum through your strands and wrap all of your hair into a silk scarf. The oil works to soften hair while the silk prevents friction to reduces frizz. Good morning perfect hair!!

Time: 1 minute

Switch To Silk!!

Like my previous tip, I would highly recommend switching to silk pillowcases because sometimes we don't want to wrap up our hair after that perfect blow dry!!

Frizzy strands is annoying and your pillowcase could be to blame—yes, your pillowcase. A silk or satin pillowcase won’t roughen up your hair cuticle as your sleep, but it will actually help your strands to dry smoother, if you tend to fall asleep with damp hair.

Hello out there to all Fashionistas and La Moda lovers. My name is Kia and I’ll be here at the La Moda stylist HQ as a guest blogger with a series of fun and easy 'how to' summer face masks.

But before we get started here’s a little about myself. I have a passion for all things fashion and beauty. I often find myself experimenting with new makeup trends and skincare regimes. Whilst I love all things fashion and beauty I also have a Bachelor of Arts in English literature and Linguistics which makes it apparent why I love to immerse myself in the world of literature with books and film.

Enough about me..lets get to the fun stuff.

Today I am going to share with you a very special face mask recipe that was taught to me by my grandmother when I was a young. She was an important influence in my life teaching me the importance of looking after your skin and treating it with respect. That's why I am passionate about all natural face masks. Let’s face it, do we really know what’s in cosmetics and skincare products that we buy at the beauty counter...

With summer fast approaching here in the land down under it’s important we look after our beautiful faces and with the transition from cool to hot weather our skin can often behave badly with dry or oily complexions, blemishes, clogged pores… and the list could go on and on. So I’m here to provide you with some all natural and easy face masks to help some of the problems that summer brings to our skin.

This Avocado Mango Face Mask is so simple to make and has so many benefits to the skin. The Avocado Mango Mask is perfect for hot and dry climates in summer as the olive oil naturally keeps the skin hydrated and soft (olive oil is even great to use on it's). The honey helps with blemishes and healing any scars that you might have. The avocado helps to keep the skin persistently hydrated and is great for sensitive skin because it rapidly calms inflammation. The mango clears clogged pores and helps eliminates those nasty blemishes.


Ready? Set? Let's get beautified!! 

Ingredients: 


                      2 tablespoons honey

                       2 tablespoons avocado

                       2 tablespoons of olive oil

                       1 mango

Step 1: Cut mango into small cubes and mash in a bowl

Step 2: Add the the avocado, honey and olive oil in the bowl with the mango and mix until smooth.

Step 3: Mix together using a fork until a smooth consistency. 

Step 4: Apply to face with either your hands or a brush. Leave the mask on face for 15-20 minutes and let it work its magic. Rinse your face with cool water and a face cloth.

See and feel the results. You will be shining from inside and out.








Stay tuned for my next blog which will bring you another how to: all natural summer face mask.

Until we meet again,

xx

Kia