Black, White, Barbie sparkles and Birthday dresses

This outfit is pretty special because it's my birthday party look. I fell in love with this dress in St. Louis. My college pal got married in St. Louis last year and while I was visiting I had time to hit up the most amazing Dillard's. They had a huge plus size section--bigger than I've ever seen. Honestly, it was so good I think it would be a worth a trip just to go shopping. So if anyone is ever up for that... The dress is from Eliza J. It's a new brand for me and the cut is so flattering. It's a fit and flare dress where you feel beautiful the minute you put it on. It's hits in the right places and skims over the others. I love the 3/4 length sleeves also. I wouldn't have minded a slightly lower neckline, but the higher neckline makes a nice base for the real star of the show--a statement necklace. I had my eye on this Barbie collection Tarina Tarantino necklace for quite a while. It finally went on sale and my birthday was the perfect excuse to finally take the plunge. I saved the necklace for my birthday party and then wore it three days straight. I just love it! It's sparkly and over-the-top, but still so comfortable to wear all day long. It's perfect for the Barbie collector or lover. I paired the dress with black tights and my black Ziera boots. A Kate Spade bow purse and "lovely" hair pin completed the look.

For my manicure, I planned to do a black nail with white flowers and a matte top coat, but I found a super dark blue with a slight shimmer that I couldn't resist. I still added a couple flowers because it was my birthday after all. I got my roots touched up and tried a shine treatment for the first time. The shine treatment is essentially a clear gloss. It helps repair your hair (much needed in my case) and makes your strands smooth and shiny. It's supposed to last up to six weeks. The shine treatment definitely gave my hair a boost of shine. You can also do a gloss treatment at home. And since it's clear, I'm guessing it's not as messy as coloring your hair at home. I had to give up at home colorings--it's just too messy for me. I was getting dark brown hair dye all over the place, no bueno.

I completely support birthday traditions that involve new dresses, fun accessories and parties. Do you have any birthday traditions? Also, don't forget the cake!

• Black and White dress - Eliza J
• Black tights - Assets
• Boots - Ziera
• Purse - Kate Spade
• Barbie necklace - Tarina Tarantino

Photos by Sarah

John Frieda Liquid Shine Clear Hair Glaze, 6.5 Fluid Ounce Buy on Amazon

Valentine's Day ready with Barbie

Barbie has certainly been in the news recently with Mattel rolling out three new body types for Barbie. I was pretty excited and very surprised to see a new curvy Barbie doll body type. I think it's awesome that Mattel is making dolls that look like more like real people. I'm thinking back about all the different dolls I've had in my life - Barbie, American Girl and plenty of baby dolls and I've never really had a doll that looked like me, definitely never a curvy doll. I read a lot of comments online from people who were upset that Mattel was changing Barbie's body type, but let's not forget Barbie's body has already changed many times. In recent years, Barbie's body was made more "realistic." Which as a sometimes collector, I actually didn't really like. But I think curvy Barbie doll is revolutionary and I love it. Also, there are still beautiful dolls available for Barbie collectors with different body types online. If money were no object, I would have every single doll in the Fashion Model Collection.

Now let's get to the outfit. This outfit relies on pieces from Torrid's Barbie collection. I bought several pieces from the collection straight away including this Barbie cardigan because I was concerned they would sell out quickly. The cardigan is versatile because a black cardigan goes with practically anything, at least in my wardrobe. But the dress was actually the real gem. I got it on clearance online and I had an extra coupon, I think it was only $12. I was blown away by the fit and quality of this dress. It fits like a dream and it's super flattering. Personally, I just thought it looked okay online, but in-person it's amazing. This is why I prefer to be able to try things on in-person at a store. Yes, it's great to shop online if you can't find what you're looking for anywhere else, but it's even better to be able to try things on in-person. You never really know for sure until you try something on how it's going to look on you. Something not so great on a hanger could look fabulous on you!

What do you think about the new Barbie body types tall, petite and curvy?

Also, I have a video on the makeup look in the photos above. Please check it out. I'll have more makeup videos coming soon too. I used Andrea lashes #23. They are super long, yet lightweight lashes - very versatile. 

• Barbie cardigan - Torrid
• Black and pink Barbie dress - Torrid
• Black Tights - ASSETS® by Sara Blakely
• Boots - Ziera

Photos by Sarah

Andrea Mod Strip Lash Pair Style 23 (Pack of 4)

$12.99

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Quite foxy

A dress with adorable tiny foxes? Who can resist. This cute dress is super flattering and even comes with a little brown belt for less than $20. Super cute items go super fast at Forever 21, so click the link below if you're interested because the dress is still available online. I love the 3/4 length sleeves--always my favorite--and the skirt has plenty of flare. It also has a lovely open back and little bow! I'm wearing Ardell's #886 lashes and Sephora's Walk of Fame lipstick. You can also check out my post from yesterday for a video on how to do this makeup look.

Happy Monday lovelies! Do you have any favorite outfits featuring cute animals?

• Fox dress - Forever 21
• Black tights - Spanx
• Gummibear shoes - Ziera

Photos by Sarah

Ardell Chocolate 886, Black/Brown

$7.00

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'Tis the Season for Christmas Sweaters

This adorable Christmas sweater was less than $17! A deal and so cute. And since you might only be able to wear a Christmas sweater to a party or two during the holiday season, there's no reason to spend a lot. But you will be ready for next year! This outfit was my choice for a work holiday party. The sweater was just the right amount of festive and it was also comfy, which is always a bonus. Christmas is almost here so you only have a few more days to wear those Christmas sweaters! Let's make it Christmas sweater week. I'm also wearing a new lipstick from MAC. It's Mariah Carey's special edition "All I Want" lipstick. It's a gorgeous glimmering champagne lipstick. You can view swatches on my instagram account @melissamchee. The lipstick is only available online.

I also want to wish you a very Merry Christmas from Portland, Oregon! Thank you for stopping by my blog during this busy holiday season. Have a wonderful week, take some time for yourself - enjoy some peppermint hot cocoa with lots of marshmallows and cheers to a new year.

• Holiday Time Xmas Apron Sweater - Walmart
• Black skirt - Alfani
• Cable Knit Over-the-Knee Tights  - Spanx
• Boots - Ziera 

Cranberry, lace & fall weddings

Cranberry dresses, fall leaves and a Kansas breeze. I traveled to Lawrence, Kansas this past weekend to attend the wedding of my wonderful Cottey College suitemate Kamay. Didn't she look beautiful? She was a gorgeous bride and couldn't keep that smile off her face. I wore this pretty and flattering rich red find from Forever 21. The dress was less than $25 and features a great cut and perfect cute sleeves. The bodice has see through lace panels so I wore a black cami underneath. Side note: believe the label when it says not to put the dress in the dryer.  I was in a hurry packing and threw the dress in the dryer for a few minutes and unfortunately, it did make the fabric ripple. I just didn't have the time to let it hang dry, whoops. The dress is still totally wearable, but it doesn't look as nice. I bought the dress within the last couple of months, but I can't find it online. It might still be available at your local Forever 21. Also, I tried the high waisted black tights from ASSETS by Sara Blakely, which you can purchase at Target for $18. They are definitely not as nice as the actual Spanx version, but they are still high quality and do the job at a more affordable price. The Spanx version come up higher on the waist and the material seemed of a slightly higher quality. Everything else in the look is from past seasons. Happy fall lovelies! Stay awesome and follow me on instagram @melissamchee for makeup closeups and details.

• Cranberry dress - Forever 21
• Black tights - ASSETS by Sara Blakely
• Boots - Ziera 
• Beige purse - Calvin Klein
• Ring - House of Harlow

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