I Finally Did It!

• I finally did it.

• I've been thinking about doing it for years.

• I've always been too afraid.

• I just never thought I could pull it off, I never thought I had the face or personality for it.

• I think it was a brave and bold move to make.
  

• I couldn't have done it without the support of two new friends and a wonderful old friend.

• I was extremely nervous throughout the entire process.

• It has taken me awhile to get comfortable with it.

• It has forced me to look at other things in my life in this exciting way.

• It fits this time of my life perfectly.

• I love that I did it in Vegas at the lovely Paris Hotel.
  

• Change really can be the best medicine in life.
  

• I'm so happy that I did it.

Have you guessed what it is exactly that I did??

I chopped a lot of my hair off and I'm finally ready for the official blog unveiling!!!
What do you think of it?? I definitely feel like a whole new me now!

Curling Irons are Evil!!/Wonderful World of Mini Tripods

This post is about the evils of curling irons and this awesome mini tripod on the right that I got in the mail recently to review on my blog. Yep, I have turned into one of those shameless bloggers that will review products! But, in all honesty, I really have been needing one of these so it came at the perfect time. As you all know my roommate and I make these awesome YouTube videos and usually we have to prop the camera against a book, a TV, a tree, really anything that we find so this tripod will make things a lot easier for us.

Now back to the evils that are curling irons for a bit... Last Saturday as I mentioned in a previous blog this week, I attended a fabulous 80's Prom Birthday Bash.

It was a lot of fun getting into my 80's wardrobe which of course means breaking out the hairspray, mousse and the dreaded curling iron.

I don't use my curling iron very often, especially not around my bangs! I'm not really entirely sure the proper technique to use a curling iron and therefore my curls usually end up looking rather messy and undone. Thanks to plenty of hairspray, I was actually somewhat impressed with how my hair was turning out this particular night. Perhaps I was getting too ambitious and cocky..who knows... I had been watching YouTube videos earlier in the day on how to do 80's style bangs and I thought I had it nailed down and could totally accomplish it. So, I went for it, I sprayed hair spray on my bangs, grabbed the curling iron and proceeded to 80's curl my bangs. I didn't go slowly like I should have and pay attention to the proximity of where my forehead and curling was. Thus, I burned my forehead. Not once. But twice. It was bad.

At the time, I cried out in pain but I knew I had to get ready and didn't have the time to really investigate the damage I had done. So, I finished my hair and thankfully, my huge 80's bangs covered any evidence of self-mutilation. However, the next day I soon realized what I had done to myself!!

These photos were taken two days ago so of course the two burns have slightly faded since last Saturday. It's pretty intense, right?! I still can't believe that that second I left the curling iron rest on my forehead was enough to cause all this damage! Thanks to aloe vera, they are looking and feeling much better now but a few days ago, they really hurt and looked like I had some kind of a skin issue on my forehead!

I took those pictures above with this really neat mini tripod I was sent. Yay! I received it from BudgetGadgets.com. They are an online retailer/wholesaler located in Shenzhen, China, dedicated to selling quality electronic gadgets and great service at wholesale price with free shipping to anywhere since 2003. I got an email from their PR manager several months ago and she asked me if I would be interested in reviewing a tripod and I told her yes, yes, of course!

Their online store sells accessories for iPods, iPhones and iPads, Cellphone Accessories, PC/Laptop Accessories, Video Game Accessories, Car Accessories, Sport, lasers, Toys and Hobbies, watches, etc.

So, anyway, back to this particular tripod, it's their portable flexible tripod for digital cameras. It's item #4652 and it sells on their website for $11.23. Their description on the site definitely accurately describes this tripod. Let's see, it enables extra security to ensure your camera is safely attached to it. I accidently dropped the tripod and the camera certainly stayed nice and snug in the tripod! Yay! This also proves that it stays connected to your camera for nearly instant setup. It is made of hard plastic, which is very strong and flexible. It can bend and rotate 360 degrees to form multiple shapes to best fit your tripod needs.
So, if this all doesn't sell you on this guy, nothing will! : )

The company also awesomely created a coupon for my visitors! The coupon code is leahainla5OFF. So when you shop on their website, BudgetGadgets.com, use this code at checkout and you will be given a 5% off discount site-wide. Pretty cool, huh? I certainly never thought that I would be given a discount code for a gadget website to offer my followers when I started this blog about a year ago! Too funny!

The Calendar Release Party Recap!

Wow, what an amazing night the Pin-Ups for Vets 2011 Calendar Release Party was on Tuesday! Check out the professional short film that the videographer for the event made on youtube. We all very impressed with the video and it definitely captures the retro mood of the night.

Sadly the pictures below are the only ones that I have so far from the event and just about all of them I took with my own camera in my bedroom after the event was over. I wanted to capture my look and I wasn't sure how many pictures I was in from the official event photographers.

I absolutely loved my hair and makeup and must give major props to Ana and her fabulous makeup artist and sister, Linette of Classic Glamour Dolls. They also can be found on their facebook page. They are both true artists! I wish that they could do my hair and makeup everyday! For just one day, it was fun to feel what it would be like to have my hair and makeup team with me. : )

Back to Red

After much thought, I finally decided to go back to my red hair and I am loving it! I don't know what it is exactly about red hair that I love so much but I do. I certainly shocked my roommates when they first saw me last night! Haha!

What do you think? Have you colored your hair a lot? What made you finally decide on a particular color or shade?

Friday Fill-Ins: HAIR

As you might be able to tell, this Friday's Fill-In is all about hair! Love it! Thanks to Erin over at dailee tidbits for the idea!

1. My last haircut was in August. I go way too long in between hair cuts but I am trying to grow my hair out now. I do need to go in pretty soon to rid of these annoying split ends that seem to love my hair. My hair is also very thin so I never like to get rid of hair on purpose.

2. My most daring hair moment was when I decided to go red for the first time about 8 years ago! Yeah, that was such a crazy decision but one of the best ever because I ended up absolutely loving it. I love being able to have red hair. I think that another daring hair moment is whenever I decide to get bangs or get a lot of layer. I'm never 100% sold on those ideas.

3. A hairstyle I'd never be brave enough to try is to shave my entire head or just even go super short. I think pixie cuts can be so cute and pretty on some girls but sadly, I do not have the face or the body for a short, short hairdo. Maybe one day.

4. I've always dreamt of being a (blonde, brunette or red-head): I've always wanted to be a natural red-head. I'm so jealous of several of my cousins who were lucky enough to have that. I have always thought my natural brown hair was so boring so I enjoy being able to dye it whenever I need a change. Highlights can be a lot of fun too.

5. My go-to hair do is: long and straight down. I love my flat iron! I can sometimes rock the curly look too with a little product. I also like to put my hair up in a cool way and then throwing on a head band. I really enjoy hair accessories but they do usually take some effort and a little extra time.

6. My biggest hair disaster: While living in Myanmar, Yangon (aka one of the most humid places on the planet!) I thought it would be cool to get bangs one summer. So, I came back to Myanmar after being in super dry and hot Arizona all summer and those bangs turned into an absolute nightmare! They were curly and wavy all over my forehead-not a good combo at all!! Ugh, it looked awful! Thank god, we didn't take a lot of pictures that year. My yearbook photo is terrible enough. Thank goodness, I can't share that picture with you on here. : )

7. A hairstyle I am dying to try is anything fun with braids. I love all braids, french braids, simple braids, fish tails, anything.. I think they look so pretty and effortless usually. I especially like a single braid that wraps around the head. I'm not good at doing them and have yet to find anyone who is. I also love working with flowers. Thankfully, my roommate has shown me how to do that well.

8. My best hair day was Wow, I don't know. I don't think I've had the 'best hair' day yet. It would be great to be on my wedding day... But I don't know.. Generally, I think I manage to have somewhat good hair days but nothing spectacular or too special.

9. The worst hairstyle I ever had was again, when I had those bad bangs in Myanmar. My hair type combined with that weather were not a good mix at all. I do have bangs now and I think that I've been able to make them work here. Right?! Haha

10. My hair is: naturally very wavy and has a mind of it's own. Every day is a different hair day. Some days it's curly and fun and other days it leans towards being frizzy and crazy. I never know if it's going to cooperate with what style I'm attempting. I have learned that my hair does not like to be washed everyday. I know that I LOVE living with a professional pin-up who owns plenty of colorful wigs, they are a ton of fun wear!

Going Blond!

Hopefully, you can tell from this picture that I made a big change yesterday to my hair! Yep, I took the plunge and got blond highlights all over. It looks very different in person! Trust me!

I really needed a change and have been talking about going blond for some time now. I knew that going totally blond would be a huge undertaking and potentially harmful to my hair so I settled for scattered highlights throughout my hair. It turned out really well if I do say so myself.

It's amazing what a new hair color will do to your psyche. I feel a lot lighter and more hopeful about the upcoming months ahead. So, if you have been considering a hair change, I highly encourage you to go and get it done. Stop talking about it and just do it!

Now I really feel like a true California Girl with my blond highlights. But please no dumb blond jokes ever! : )

To go red or not to go red, that is the question...

I am a brunette but up until this past October, I've been coloring my hair red. I had been doing it since 9th grade! Yes, I know that's an awfully long time and I am sure that my hair is a lot unhealthier now because of it. Unfortunately, it is very thin and dry and I always seem to have split ends. But red hair made me happy and isn't that what life is all about? Why not change the things that make you unhappy?

I remember going back home to the states the summer after 8th grade and feeling slightly nervous about starting high school in the fall. I wanted to return to school with a completely new look. I wanted to no longer wear glasses and I wanted cool and different hair. Presto, I got that!

I went to the eye doctor with my mom and spent the next two hours in their figuring out how to put contacts in my eyes. That was quite the traumatic experience. After that we headed to the salon. I knew exactly what I wanted-red hair! Surprisingly, there are a lot of reds out there. Picking a red that wasn't too orange or too dark was a little dilemma but not impossible. After a little deliberation on my part, I got the red hair that I'd been craving forever. I was instantly in love with it! It was especially beautiful in the sun. Oh wow, this is making me nostalgic... : (

Well, as you can tell, I miss my red hair. A lot! I really miss how unique it made me feel. I mean, I certainly don't run around bumping into red heads all the time. Now when I do, I'm just jealous of them and their awesome radiant hair. I chose to take a break from coloring my hair for a few reasons. I wanted to give my hair a rest and let it gain some of it's youthful glow again. I wanted to stop spending so much money every month getting it colored. I also was curious as to what my original color was after all these years of dyeing it. Sadly, I had kind of forgotten. Many of my friends and sister encouraged me to get back to my 'roots' too.

So, there are obviously plenty of positives to stop coloring my hair. But do I really want to? Will this brown hair make me happy? I don't know yet. I'm still blow drying and flat-ironing my hair, so I am not going completely natural with it. There was even a time in October when I seriously thought about going BLOND! I got a lot of feedback about it but in the end I figured that a long blond wig would suffice for Halloween. I was Lady Gaga. I do really enjoy being a blond and just on Saturday night, I enjoyed wearing another blond wig. Do blonds really have more fun? Hmm...

Now that I live in LA, I feel like I'm surrounded by people changing themselves. It seems to me that anything and everything can be physically altered if you were willing to pay a price. People are getting plastic surgery to tighten this or that, tummy tucks, breast lifts and enlargements, chemical peels, Botox, waxing galore, bedazzling their nether regions, (Yep, Swati told me about this last night) fake tanning and of course coloring their hair. I wouldn't be human if I didn't admit that I've thought about doing a few of these things. Definitely bedazzling my lady parts is a top priority..NOT! Wow! Why would anyone ever do that?? It's just plain odd to me. No, but in all seriousness, I have considered a few things. But then am I still being 'me'? Will that make me just another fake Californian girl? Or did I already enter that world when I started dying my hair years ago? I don't know.

So, what to do.. To go red or not to go red, that is the question. I guess time will tell. For now, I'll keep using my fancy oil and leave in conditioner to save my hair from the afterlife.

I ❤ Saturdays!

This Saturday can only be summed up with three simple words: shoes, food and beauty. That's all a girl really needs, right?

Today, my roommate, Gina and I spent the afternoon together. We took a very long scenic drive down Sunset Strip, which I really enjoyed. I love it. There is just so much to see on this mile and a half stretch. There is really something for everyone; bars, clubs, restaurants, cafes, fancy hotels, boutiques, comedy clubs and Hollywood nightspots. All are definitely on the cutting edge of the entertainment business. I will have to let you know what the places are really like inside when I start going to them. Here's something interesting that I just learned, the Las Vegas Strip was named after the Sunset Strip.

Anyway, after this mini tour, we began our shopping extravaganza. Gina introduced me to the wonderful store called DSW, it stands for Designer Shoe Warehouse. It is row after row of amazing shoes at great deals. In other words, my heaven! I purchased three pairs! They are fabulous and I do not regret buying any of them at all! While my partner in crime bought, shall we say, a few more than me. ; ) In the picture above are two pairs that we bought today. Mine are the black ankle boots which I absolutely adore! I've been wanting a pair forever and now thanks to DSW, I finally have a pair. Yay!

After an exhausting (NOT!) hour or so of hunting for shoes, we ventured back out into the daylight for lunch. Gina recommended we eat at Aroma Bakery Cafe. It was in a word, delightful. We ordered a deliciously flavorful Greek plate that had everything from hummus to grape leaves on it which I now know that I really like! We also split the House Sandwich which was equally as tasty with avocado, baked mushrooms and egg in it. My appetite was certainly satisfied! Fortunately, we have lots of leftovers for tomorrow's lunch! Is it wrong that I am already excited about it?!

Later on in the day, I made my way to my first beauty salon experience here in LA and let me tell you, it was phenomenal! All week I've been telling myself that I desperately need to get my hair trimmed, my eyebrows waxed and my nails done so finally on Thursday, I went to one of my new favorite websites www.yelp.com and quickly found a nearby salon. The reviews for Julie's Beauty Secrets were by far the best that I read so I figured that I would give it a shot and I am so happy that I did. Not only is it super close to my house but they also have their very own private parking lot which is a HUGE deal here in LA. The service was amazing and something that I love is that they continued to call me by my name the entire time I was there. I really appreciate that. I was very happy pleased with my manicure and the fairly painless eyebrow wax. I had an amazing neck and head massage while they were washing my hair which then continued before they started trimming it too. Bonus! And I am very happy to announce that I love the final product. My hair feels and looks so much healthier. I think it's so funny that despite getting a little cut off, hair seems to always feel longer after getting a trim. Why is that? Well, whatever the reason is, I like it cause I am trying to grow my hair out. Certainly not as long as the girl in the picture above but you get the idea.

So, yeah, that was my busy Saturday! Tonight I just watched a movie at home with my roommate, Swati, and her friend. Tomorrow, I'll be going on another fun adventure but I don't want to spoil the surprise so I'll keep my FOUR avid followers in suspense..haha! So, stay tuned. Good night!