TCM Summer Under The Stars

Hello my dears! Hope you are all doing well!

Unfortunately I haven't been feeling too well since last night so I didn't have much time to work on my "What I'm Loving Wednesday" post. So instead I decided to share one of the things I look forward to every year and that is TCM's Summer Under The Stars! Every August the Turner Classic Movies channel features a different star each day of that month. For instance, this year's August 1st star is John Wayne so for the whole day they play a marathon of his movies. I truly enjoy and appreciate this event every summer. It lets me watch those classic movies I love and ones I haven't seen before. Sometimes I also get to discover particular actors and actresses that I didn't know much about which is always nice!

Here is the schedule for this year:

8/1 - John Wayne
8/2 - Myrna Loy
8/3 - Johnny Weissmuller
8/4 - Marilyn Monroe
8/5 - Claude Rains
8/6 - Van Heflin
8/7 - Sidney Poitier
8/8 - Rita Hayworth
8/9 - Toshiro Mifune
8/10 - Lionel Barrymore
8/11 - James Mason
8/12 - Ginger Rogers
8/13 - Deborah Kerr
8/14 - James Cagney
8/15 - Lillian Gish
8/16 - Elvis Presley
8/17 - Katharine Hepburn
8/18 - Freddie Bartholomew
8/19 - Eva Marie Saint
8/20 - Anthony Quinn
8/21 - Kay Francis
8/22 - Jack Lemmon
8/23 - Gene Kelly
8/24 - Irene Dunne
8/25 - Tyrone Power
8/26 - Gary Cooper
8/27 - Jeanette MacDonald
8/28 - Ava Gardner
8/29 - Ingrid Bergman
8/30 - Warren William
8/31 - James Caan

I'm quite excited for Rita Hayworth and Irene Dunne..two of my favorite stars! Who are some of your favorite classic movie stars??

Review: Gilded Lily Beauty

I love Etsy and it’s community of small businesses. I often browse around looking for vintage clothing and accessories or natural beauty products. Luckily I stumbled upon Gilded Lily Beauty! Gilded Lily Beauty is run by the very sweet Candace who makes bath and body products by hand. Her line of products are inspired by the culture of the 1920’s and 1930’s. I must admit that the packaging was what caught my eye and led me to her shop! I’m a sucker for any sort of vintage or retro packaging haha. All of her products have such darling names as well, including “Victory Garden” and “Boudoir”.

Candace was kind enough to send me a couple of her products for review. I was so excited to receive them! A few days later I got a package containing a bottle of “Silk Stockings” hand and body lotion, a bar of “Victory Garden” goat’s milk soap and a sample of the “Boudoir” goat’s milk soap. Of course I smelled everything right away and it was heavenly!




Silk Stockings Hand & Body Lotion ($15): I picked out this lotion purely for the name and I’m glad I did! I’m not kidding you all when I say that this is probably my new favorite lotion. Silk Stockings has an almond, vanilla, cocoa and musk scent and it’s truly delightful! It contains sunflower oil and coconut oil combined with shea butter and aloe which makes a wonderfully rich and creamy texture. There is also silk amino acids in the lotion to help soften the skin. What I love most about this product is that it absorbs into the skin so fast! It doesn’t leave your skin feeling greasy at all.







Victory Garden Goat’s Milk Soap ($7): First of all I love the name of this soap! Victory Gardens were vegetable, fruit and herb gardens planted on private residences and parks during WW1 and WW2 to increase food production.

The soap itself has a beautiful floral design on top. It’s so pretty I almost didn’t want to use it! As soon as I removed the packaging I could instantly smell sweet blackberries! There is also a hint of sage which is very nice. This soap also contains goat’s milk which makes a nice creamy lather. Goat’s milk has lactic acid in it and lactic acid is great for naturally exfoliating the skin. I felt nice and clean after using it but not super dry and tight like some soaps can do!

Boudoir Goat’s Milk Soap ($7): This soap smells so beautiful! It immediately made me think of old Hollywood. Boudoir has a rich green fig, coconut milk and musk scent. I usually don’t like musk because it tends to give me a headache but the musk in this soap isn’t too overpowering and was actually very nice. I’m definitely going to purchase a full bar of this soap next time!

I can honestly say that I love each product I received and think they smell just lovely! I only review products on my blog that I believe in and stand behind 100%. I especially like to support smaller companies that create quality products. Candace makes a wonderful line of products at fair prices. With that being said I highly recommend checking out Gilded Lily Beauty.

Gilded Lily Products can be purchased at http://www.etsy.com/shop/GildedLilyBeauty

*NOTE: These products were sent to me free of charge for reviewing purposes. I was not paid for this review and all thoughts and opinions are entirely my own.

Family Photos

Happy Friday!

I love looking at old photographs. Whenever I was at my grandma's house I always found myself spending lengthy periods of time looking through her photo albums (Or watching Shirley Temple movies!). I enjoyed it immensely!

For today's post I just wanted to simply share some of my old family photos...



This is my favorite picture of my dad and grandpa. Written in pencil on the back it says "Taken in May 1944. Harry was just out of boot training. Neal was 2 years old."




My grandpa Harry

What I'm Loving Wednesday

1. This lovely photo of a women from the 40's. I believe this was taken in Hollywood. I think her dress is just gorgeous!




2. The Amazing Spider-Man. I finally got to see it a couple nights ago and thought it was great! I'm a bit of a Marvel lover.




3. Gilded Lily Beauty. I'm so glad I discovered this shop on Etsy! Candace makes soaps and lotions inspired by the 1920's and 1930's. I'm actually going to be posting a review on a couple of her products next week! :)




4. The Lily Dress in Tipsy Elephant Print from Golightly. I had some store credit over at PinupGIrlClothing.com and decided to use some if it on this dress! It's such an adorable print and perfect for summer! It's also a great length on me. I'm only 5'2" and love when I don't have to get things hemmed haha.




5. I've been on a Helen Forrest kick this week. Such a beautiful voice!




6. Bakelite bangles. Oh how I would love some Bakelite bangles! I'm on the hunt for some that are reasonably priced but no luck yet. I might have to resort to purchasing online but I'm on the fence about it.




7. NAPCO head vases. I have always thought these were darling! I'd like to find one to put on my vanity.

Movie of the Week: All About Eve (1950)

Starring: Bette Davis, Anne Baxter, George Sanders and Celeste Holm
Directed By: Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Synopsis: An ambitious young actress tries to take over a star's career and love life.

My Thoughts: I was saddened to hear about the passing of Celeste Holm this week. In remembrance I decided to choose All About Eve as the movie of the week. I absolutely love All About Eve! Bette Davis's performance as Margo Channing is one of her greatest in my opinion. Anne Baxter's character, Eve, is such a ruthless and self-serving woman. She played her part well and will definitely be a character you'll love to despise! You'll also get to see a brief performance by a young Marilyn Monroe before her leap to fame. Oh and of course we can't forget Celeste Holm's charming performance as Karen Richards. The acting in this film is wonderful and the dialog is excellent. It's such a classic film that I think everyone should see at least once! Also, it doesn't hurt that it was nominated for 14 Academy Awards and won 6 including Best Picture. So if you haven't seen it yet I suggest you get right to it!

Trailer:

Review: Rosebud Lip Balm Trio

"The Rosebud Perfume Company, Inc. was founded by George F. Smith in 1895. The business began in a small drugstore across the street from what is now the "Rosebud Building". The Rosebud Perfume Company, Inc. distributes its salves and lip balms throughout the world and is enjoyed by celebrities, athletes, homemakers, and health care providers alike." - rosebudperfume.com

Once known as Smith's "Balsam of Rosebuds" is now what we know as Smith's "Rosebud Salve". Linda over at Rosebud Perfume Co. was kind enough to send me their Rosebud Medley of Lip Balm Tubes for review. I was quite excited because Smith's Rosebud Salve has become a bit of a cult product in the beauty community.





The Rosebud Perfume Co. is based in Woodsboro, Maryland so my package arrived quickly since I live in Virginia Beach. First of all the packaging of this product is stunning! The tubes are encased in a beautiful circular tin embossed with the Rosebud logo. Inside the tin was a tube of the Rosebud Salve, Strawberry Lip Balm and Mocha Rose Lip Balm.





Smith's Rosebud Salve: This salve has been a favorite since 1892! It must be because of it's many uses. For instance you can use it as an eye makeup remover, cuticle softener and sunburn easer. You can even use it around the eyes or on the throat for dry or wrinkled skin. It also has many cosmetic uses! Rosebud Salve can be used to tame eyebrows, smooth any fly-aways or frizzy hair, and as an eye makeup base. I like to use it as my nighttime lip moisturizer. It has a nice rose scent and emollient texture. My lips are super soft in the morning!

Strawberry Lip Balm: This has all of the goodness of the original balm but with a trade secret blend of strawberry flavors! I love strawberries so I was delighted to see it when I opened the tin! It's a great flavor for the summer months.

Mocha Rose Lip Balm: I didn't even know this scent existed and was very intrigued. It ended up being my favorite out of the three! I must admit that I have a bit of a sweet tooth so of course I thought this smelled amazing. Again, it's just as great as the original but with a delicious chocolate café scent!

I would definitely recommend any of the Smith's lip balms. They are great multipurpose products sold at a reasonable price. Most of the lip balm tubes and tins range from $6-$8. You may purchase Rosebud Perfume Co. products at your local Sephora. For a full list of other retailers please click here.

*NOTE: These products were sent to me free of charge for reviewing purposes. I was not paid for this review and all thoughts and opinions are entirely my own.

What I'm Loving Wednesday

1. Nick Waterhouse..such great music!




2. This LC Lauren Conrad Pintuck Crochet Dress. I tried it on at Kohl's and had to have it! The color is a lovely coral and the fit is very flattering. There is also a crochet back not seen in this picture but trust me it's so pretty!




3. Land Girls. I was browsing through Netflix the other night and saw they had added it. I'm addicted to BBC dramas and mini-series so I started watching it immediately and was sucked in! It's about the lives of four girls in the Women's Land Army during World War 2.




4. These Emerald City Sandals from PLASTICLAND! I need to own these sooner than later.




5. My new Martha Stewart cast iron casserole. This may sound silly to some of you but I love to cook and I've been dying for a cast iron casserole! It was on sale last week so we bought one in the orange color and it's beautiful!




6. Josie Maran Argan Oil. I received a deluxe sample size from Sephora and have been using it as my evening moisturizer. I was skeptical as first because I do have oily skin but it doesn't make me feel greasy and my skin feels so soft in the morning!




7. I love this picture of an art deco inspired bathroom!