Tag Archives: cool

Transform Your House Into A Techno-Geek Paradise

Standard
Transform Your House Into A Techno-Geek Paradise

The modern home has changed a lot over the last decade, more than most people though it would. But today technology is so advanced that the possibilities for transforming your home into a slice of techno heaven are greater than ever. It feels as if we’re on the cusp of a lifestyle revolution on the same scale as that which people living in Victorian England experienced when they first got piped water. In a word, it’s huge.

So what cool things are out there and how are our homes changing for the better? Check this out.

ISmartAlarm: Ever since the middle ages, we’ve been relying on bits of metal in our pockets to keep our homes secure, also known as keys. But keys are problematic. Not only can they get easily lost, they also don’t provide us with any active protection while we’re out of the house. The good news, however, is that there are a bunch of new technologies, mainly paid for through crowdfunding, that promise to make our homes a lot more secure.

One of those is the iSmartAlarm project, starting on Indiegogo a couple of years back, which is designed to monitor our homes from top to bottom and alert us to any and all threats. It combines things like motion detection, pet tracking, video cameras, and child tracking. In fact, it’s everything you need to create an Orwellian superstate in your own home.

Sites like www.suddenlink.com/internet are already looking into ways to provide customers with the high-bandwidth WiFi and coverage they’ll need to keep these systems up and running. So it’s probably only a matter of time before we’ll see these sorts of Mission Impossible movie security system, which used to be used to protect priceless diamond jewelry, coming to our homes.

Control4 Home Automation: Ever since the 1960s, people have lusted after a consumer robot that would do the dishes, make them drinks (especially this!), and clean the house. We’re still waiting, of course, but in the meantime, there’s a lot to get excited about. One thing that is piquing the interest of techno geeks worldwide is the idea of the automated home –  a home where you no longer have to do the boring stuff, like turn on the lights. It’ll do it all for you. Well now, thanks to firms like Control4, their dream is becoming a reality. The company offers a product that controls the lighting, the security, the climate and even the audio all from one control panel. It’s currently being marketed mainly to restaurant owners and hotels, but there’s no reason why the system couldn’t be set up in somebody’s home.

The system allows people to customize their living experience in any way they want, according to www.mensbe.com. That means that you can dedicate an entire room to a theme you love – Star Trek, Harry Potter, CANDY?!

tech7.png

 Dream room!!

Featured Image By: Flickr

If The Shoe Fits – Jennifer Lopez Edition

Standard
If The Shoe Fits – Jennifer Lopez Edition

Hi everyone and TGIF! Last weekend my mom and I had to go to Kohl’s to make some returns. We were going there strictly to make said returns and then leave. But, of course, that never really happens, does it? While my mom was making the returns, I decided to go look at the shoes. I wasn’t interested in any new clothes since I’m pretty well set for the summer and I figured that the shoe department was a safe place to spend five minutes until we had to go…WRONG.

It turns out that Kohl’s was having their last ditch 80% off sale to get rid of all of the out of season shoes to help ring in the warm weather. As soon as I saw this, I crumbled under the concept of such amazing deals and began to scour the aisles for my size. There were so many pairs that were cute but not necessarily cute for me. However, there were two pairs of ankle booties that totally reminded me of my mom so I set them aside for her to try on when she arrived in the shoe department.

As always, I was right and my mom loved the booties. When we decided that those were the pairs we would leave with, we began to head out of the shoe department and to the registers. But that was until we saw that there were shelves of shoes set up in the middle of the main aisles that were marked “Under $10”. We ended up taking a look (shocker) and found a pair of boots for FOUR DOLLARS for my sister. We also saw my latest addition to my shoe collection – a pair of beautiful Jennifer Lopez wedge boots. Take a look:

^^^ ❤ ❤ ❤

I had my eye on these boots ever since they came out in the winter. Unfortunately, they were priced at a cool one hundred and were never marked down enough to make the purchase worth it. So when I saw that these boots were priced at just ten dollars, I knew that I had to try them on. They were as perfect as I had hoped and looked so cool with my black skinnies because the opening of the boot was so big. It created a super edgy contrast and I was smitten.

As if the ten dollar deal wasn’t already amazing, my mom and I had a thirty percent off coupon which brought these originally one hundred dollar pair of boots to SEVEN DOLLARS!!!! My mom and I ended up walking away with four pairs of shoes for forty dollars. I couldn’t believe our luck with all of the shoes we found because I feel like we snagged the best of the pairs that were left. And, of course, nothing is sweeter than a great steal!

So there you have it, the latest issue of If The Shoe Fits – Jennifer Lopez Edition! Has anyone scored any good off season deals recently? What store do you go to that has the best clothes for the right price? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

It’s In The Bag – Nine West Edition

Standard
It’s In The Bag – Nine West Edition

Hi everyone and happy Tuesday! First of all, I want to wish a very happy birthday to my older brother, Andrew! I love you! Second of all, I want to talk to all of you about the most gorgeous purse that I added to my collection this weekend. My mom and I had a gift card from TJMaxx (shocker) so we decided to pop into the store and take a look around. I ended up with two pairs of shorts which you can see on Wednesday’s post “A Short Story” and a beautiful Nine West tote bag. Take a look:

9w

^^^ IT’S SO PRETTY!!!!

I admit that I am not an animal print fan in the slightest. I don’t do leopard, nor cheetah, zebra, or any other print that you can think of. However, I freaking LOVE snakeskin…Fake snakeskin, of course. I think that snakeskin is the most edgy, cool, and rocker chic pattern on the planet. It screams luxury mixed with rebellion and I can’t get enough. So it shouldn’t surprise you when I tell you that as soon as I laid eyes on my new beauty that it was love at first sight.

I took a tentative glance at the price tag and was astounded to see that it was only thirty dollars in contrast to the Nine West tag that was still attached and boasting a ninety dollar original price. Once I saw that the bag was reasonably priced, I plucked it from its hanger and slung it over my arm. Usually I don’t like carrying big bags but this one was different. It was made so narrowly that it didn’t look bulky but rather sleek and slinky. I loved that it fit comfortably between my arm and body and of course, the color palette was pure Lil Red perfection.

Although I was so enamored with the Nine West purse, I had a hard time justifying buying a new one since I had just recently got one from Kohl’s. For the entire shopping trip I debated on if it was worth it to bite the bullet and make the purchase. Despite how much I loved the bag, I decided that it wasn’t something that I absolutely needed. But my beloved mother wasn’t having that.

Because my birthday is right around the corner she offered it as an early birthday gift from her and I just couldn’t say no! It was just so perfect and the fact that the price of it was the exact amount of our gift card made it seem like it was meant to be. I love my new purse so much and I can’t wait to use it for work, school, and my internship. Thank you so much, mom! And happy early birthday to me! 😀

So there you have it, the latest issue of It’s In The Bag – Nine West Edition! Has anyone done some shopping recently? What has been your latest purchase? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Monday Update: This Or That Edition Update

Standard
Monday Update: This Or That Edition Update

Hi everyone and happy Tuesday! During a previous Monday Update, I asked for everyone’s opinion on what pair of glasses I should pick out between two equally gorgeous pairs. The choice was between a circular pair of Dolce & Gabbanas or a rectangular pair of Kliik Denmarks. I made my decision and received my new pair of glasses last week and I must say, I’m very happy with them! So what pair did I pick? Take a look and find out:

glasses2

THE DOLCE & GABBANAS!!!

Shocking, I know, because the majority of you guys picked the Kliik Denmarks as the pair that I should pick. So why did I go with the polar opposite? I guess I just liked how quirky the circular pair was. I liked that it made me feel professional but still fun and I loved how I could picture myself wearing them to school, my job, and my internship. And yes, I was totally enamored by the fact that they were Dolce & Gabbana. I’m really not a girl that goes gaga over labels but I do have a soft spot in my heart for designer eye-wear. It’s a weakness and a sickness, I tell ya!

All of the above reasons kind of sealed the deal for the D&Cs but one major “aha!” moment made me feel that much more confident in my decision. When I returned to the optometrist’s office after a weekend with both pairs of glasses to help make up my mind, I was wearing my old pair of specs. I’ve had my only pair of glasses since I was fifteen (I’m almost twenty-two, now) and it took trying the Kliik Denmark pair on one more time after I took my old glasses off to know that they were no longer the pair for me.

My pair of old faithfuls just so happens to be the exact same shape as the Kliik Denmarks except that the frames are thicker. I had no intentions of parting with my old pair of glasses so that I could have them as a backup pair and to wear them around the house on a lazy day. Once I saw that I would essentially be having two pairs of the same glasses but in different colors and widths, I knew that I made the right choice by picking the Dolce & Gabbanas.

The D&Cs were the first pair of glasses that I tried on after my eye appointment so it seems fitting that they ended up being the pair that I left with. I’m so happy with my new glasses and all of the compliments that I’ve received about them make me feel even more confident with my quirky cool choice!

So there you have it, an Update on a previous Monday Update: This Or That Edition! Has anyone purchased any new eye or sunglasses recently? How about a new pair of shoes or a purse? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Monday Update: This Or That Edition

Standard
Monday Update: This Or That Edition

Howdy everyone and happy Monday! I hope all of you had a fabulous weekend! I’ve needed to go to the eye doctor for quite some time now and finally managed to get an appointment this past Friday. After I got a new prescription for my contacts, I spent some time looking for new glasses because I’ve seriously had the same pair since I was fifteen. I found a few pairs that really spoke to me so I went home and then returned later in the day with my mom to get her opinion.

I tried on tons of different frames but I ended up returning to the two pairs that I was daydreaming about all afternoon. Two remarkably different but amazingly cute frames. A pair of red, black, and white Kliik Denmarks and a circular black and grey pair of Dolce & Gabbanas. My mom and I were really struggling to figure out which pair was the one and began to grow increasingly aware of the time crunch that we were working with as the office was closing soon.

Lucky for me, I was allowed to take both frames home for the weekend so that I could decide which one I like the best. All weekend I’ve been flip flopping between the two quirky cool pairs and I think I’ve made a decision…But I want to hear what the general public thinks, first. I’m so aware that the following selfies kind of suck but they get the job done. So take a look and then help me decide which pair I should go with:

^^^ Why must I love them both? WHY?!

So there you have it, this week’s Monday Update: This Or That Edition! What pair of glasses do you like the best? Has anyone struggled with a glasses situation similar to mine? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

New NYX Lipsticks

Standard
New NYX Lipsticks

Hellooo everyone and happy weekend! I absolutely love the makeup brand, NYX, and I recently restocked my favorite shade of their matte lipstick and purchased a color in their new Liquid Suede cream lipstick, too. NYX has the literal best matte lipstick that I’ve ever used in my life and I swear by my go to color, Pure Red. In almost every single picture of me that I have posted on lifewithlilred, chances are that I’m wearing my favorite shade. I was running low on my lipstick so I had to snag another tube from Target and also ended up with their Liquid Suede lipstick in Stone Fox. Take a look at the packaging and my skin swatches and then let’s discuss:

Before I began using NYX’s matte lipstick, I was using Covergirl and blow drying the bejeezus out of my lips to give it the perfect matte finish. At the time, there really was no reputable matte lipsticks out in any brand so I thought that I would be stuck blow drying my lippies until they fall off. Then, one day, I stumbled upon NYX’s matte lipstick at the grocery store and was so impressed by the ones that I tested that I bought at least five different shades that day. Of course, Pure Red ended up being my favorite and I’ve been a faithful user ever since.

As soon as I saw that I was running low on my Pure Red, it was vital that I got a new tube ASAP. Thankfully, a trip to Target remedied my restocking needs and I had a brand new matte lippy stored safely in my basket. During that shopping trip, I had the insatiable urge to try something new, as well. I’ll be frank, I’m not keen on the super colorful lipstick trend. I don’t care for the blues, greens, and purples that have been flooding my Facebook and WordPress newsfeed as of late. However, I was very interested in trying to find a grey or a black lipstick to try.

I knew that NYX had recently come out with their Liquid Suede line that boasted a wide variation of colors so I was really happy to see that Target had the new collection fully stocked. They had your classic reds and pinks as well as the funky crayon box colors, too. But at the very end of their color spectrum, they had a deep grey shade called Stone Fox. It was exactly what I wanted but I was very nervous to buy it without testing it in case it looked fucking miserable. So I did what any self respecting asshole of a shopper would do…I removed the plastic wrapping on the lipstick, went to the nearest mirror in the clothing section, and gave it a try…

It. Looked. Horrible. The dark grey was just too much and I looked like a total freak. I panicked, because I didn’t know how I was going to get the color off because it was clinging to my lips for dear life. Then, I had an idea. I dug into my purse and grabbed one of my berry flavored tinted chapsticks to see if I could coax the color off by applying some moisture. I smudged on the chapstick and rubbed my lips together like I was trying to start a fire and then I examined the results in the mirror…

Not bad. Not bad at all. The Liquid Suede/chapstick combo resulted in a smokey pink with the most subtle hint of lavender and it looked so cool! I showed my mom the shade that I concocted and she loved it, too. I asked her what color she thought it was and she was dumbfounded when I told her that my custom color was born from a lipstick shade that looked like I had smeared car grease onto my mouth.

After achieving a unique kind of success with the Liquid Suede shade, I couldn’t not buy it…Especially considering I had already opened it. I tested my Berry Smokey color around my best friend and boyfriend and it was the first thing that they complimented me on when they saw me. I was so pleasantly surprised when my boyfriend noticed because makeup isn’t his forte in the slightest! Honestly, makeup really isn’t my strong point either so I was so happy that I was able to turn a totally dreadful color into something edgy and cool all on my own.

So after reading the tale of my small lipstick victory, the real question is, would I recommend the products that I purchased? If you are a fan of red lipstick, I would without a doubt recommend NYX’s Pure Red matte lipstick. It’s the most gorgeous shade of red that I have ever seen and if you don’t believe me – check out all of my pics from yesterday’s photo shoot post!

As far as NYX’s Liquid Suede cream lipstick in Stone Fox goes, I’m kind of wishy washy about it. If you want to look like you fell face first into wet tar, then yes, totally buy this product. If you want to create your own smokey shade by mixing it with another lipstick or balm, then yes, totally buy this product. However, if you’re looking for a subtle way to rock a dark lipstick shade, then this cream lipstick is not for you. Wearing the deep grey color alone was too much, even for me, and that’s really saying something considering I’m the queen of all things edgy and quirky. So, yes, I suppose I do recommend this product, too, but just know what you’re getting yourself into before you buy it.

All in all, I’m really pleased with my New NYX Lipsticks and I’m so happy that I found such a reliable brand to suit all of my makeup needs. What is your favorite NYX product? How do you feel about the lipsticks that I wrote about today if you use either? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Hello, It’s Me!

Standard
Hello, It’s Me!

Hey there everyone and happy Sunday! I hope all of you are having a wonderful and relaxing weekend. I’ve noticed that I haven’t put up a whole lot of pictures of me on the ol’ blog lately. To remedy that, I had my dad break out his prized camera and snap some pictures of me during this past week. We shot some pictures outside and as you can see, Ohio got quite a bit of snow! (So much so that I was snowed in at home for an afternoon!) We also took some pics on our cool, color blocked hallway for your viewing pleasure. Take a look:

^^^ Thanks, dad! ❤

What I Wore:

  • Featured Image Jacket: This was one of my Christmas gifts, compliments of Target. You can read all about it in my post, New Coat Heaven.
  • Killin’ It Hoodie: My hoodie dress is one of my all time favorite Forever 21 finds which you can read about in my Monday Update: Forever 21 Haul Edition.
  • Black Skinnies: I got these from Express about a year or so ago. They used to have the coolest snakeskin pattern printed on them but unfortunately it faded away after over a year of washing. -_-
  • Zipper Front Heels: These babies are one of my steals that I got from Kohl’s a while back ago which you can read about in, If The Shoe Fits – Apt. 9 Edition.
  • Teal Fingerless Gloves: My glovies are one of my favorite accessories that I own. My mom got these for me from TJMaxx when I was in high school. It was on a day that I didn’t feel like going to school so we went shopping instead! I love them just as much now as I did when I first got them.

It was so nice to be able to spend the afternoon being photographed by my dear old dad. He definitely shot some winners and it was a great way to spend time together! How has everyone’s weekend been? What kind of weather are you having in your neck of the woods right now? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Lifewithlilred By The Numbers

Standard
Lifewithlilred By The Numbers

Hi everyone and happy Tuesday! I was blown away by recently hitting my 2,000 followers mark here on lifewithlilred. Since I’ve had my page up and running for over a year now, I thought it would be fun to do a stats post and see just how much things have progressed on my little old blog. Let’s take a look:

   My Stats:

  • Posts: 562
  • Comments: 1,553
  • Followers: 2,105
  • Categories: 32
  • Tags: 2,335
  • Countries: 150
  • Views: 43,679

*** Note that I am prewriting this so these stats are slightly off!

If you would have told me when I first started blogging that after over a year I would have posted 562 times, I would have said that you’re crazy! But now, I feel strange if I don’t get to write at least a quick post every day! Once a week I take twenty or so minutes to plan out my posts for the week as well as ideas for days to come. I love coming up with new and exciting articles to write and it’s always so fun to me to see how you guys react to them.

I always find so much joy in looking at my stats and seeing how all of my hard work paid off. If you haven’t already, I can’t recommend making a post like this enough – or at least going through your accumulated stats to see how you’re doing. It felt awesome to look through these numbers and see how much they’ve grown since my very first blog post! For once, it was a trip down memory lane that was enjoyable to take!

So there you have it, Lifewithlilred By The Numbers! A short and sweet post that took ten minutes to write and that brought a smile to my face. So worth it. How long have you been blogging for? How many posts have you wrote? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Monday Update: Forever 21 Haul Edition

Standard
Monday Update: Forever 21 Haul Edition

Hi everyone and happy Monday! Last weekend my mom and I ventured to one of the bigger malls that my area of Ohio has to offer, Southpark Mall in Strongsville. We rarely go to Southpark and the last time that I went was years ago. The mall is absolutely gigantic and we went during the holiday season last time around so needless to say, it was quite overwhelming. Last week we went just to change things up a little bit and I died and went to Forever 21 heaven. Their store was huge! Take a look at my latest goodies from my most recent shopping trip:

^^^ I’m a fan.

As all of you know, Lil Red rocks all black everything more often than not so when I saw these edgy hoodie dresses, I knew that they had to be mine. When I used to work at an urban clothing store called Next, they carried the brand HBA (Hood By Air) and I was obsessed. I think that these hoodies are very reminiscent of HBA which is one of the many reasons why I like them so much. Plus, they were infinitely cheaper which was an added bonus! For both of these hoodie dresses I paid fifty dollars which is a quarter of the price of one HBA top. Score!

Usually I’m not one to gravitate towards hoodies or sweatshirts. I much prefer sharp sweaters, tops, or jackets. However, I really liked that these hoodies both went down below the normal at the hip length. The “Killin’ It” sweat dress went down to a little below my knees and the “In High Demand” zip up went down to my calves. This automatically made them way more edgy to me and it created endless styling possibilities.

The great thing about these hoodie dresses, asides from how cute they are, is all of the different outfits that you can wear with them. I tried the sweat dresses on over my black skinnies which worked really well but the possibilities are endless! I can’t wait to wear them with nothing underneath as a real dress or with a pair of opaque or sheer black tights. I also plan on wearing the “In High Demand” dress with the zipper undone to show off a cute pair of shorts and top in the summer. I really like pieces that you can wear all year round so that you can get creative with how you style it!

I’m so aware that these sweat dresses are really similar to each other but I couldn’t pick just one to save my life! I know that if I chose only one that I would be thinking about the hoodie that I left behind for forever. I’m also really glad that I did buy both because when my boyfriend and I went to the mall that he lives by, I popped in the Forever 21 there and they didn’t have either of them! That made me even happier with my decision.

I’ve worn both of my hoodie dresses multiple times already and I can’t get enough of them. I like that these pieces are both amazingly comfortable but they by no means sacrifice style while wearing them. The “Killin’ It” sweat dress is so fun and I had to laugh because I wore it on Thursday night when I was coaching figure skating for the Special Olympics and we just happened to be taking photos that day. I’m sure all of the pictures that I’m in turned out really swell since I’m rockin a hoodie with “Killin’ It” plastered across the front!

As I write this post I’m wearing my “In High Demand” zip up over a pair of black skinnies and a graphic baseball tee and it certainly spruces up the outfit! It also keeps me nice and warm because it’s very chilly in my neck of the woods today. I’m so pleased with my latest purchases and I can’t wait to wear them for many seasons to come. Thanks, Forever 21! ❤

So there you have it, this week’s Monday Update: Forever 21 Haul Edition! I hope all of you are having a wonderful start to your week so far. How was everyone’s weekend? Who has recently snagged some cute new clothes while shopping? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah