Perfecting Blonde

Yeah, I already know what you are all going to say...

2010-02-03T23:03:00.000-08:00

We suck at noveling. I already know. We're busy and that's a good thing so back off.

(I have to be rude to you guys because I can't be rude to Lauren. Quite frankly, she frightens me.)

So for the past two weeks we have been SO busy preparing for the Bridal Spectacular and the Style Me Pretty shoot.

Both went amazing. It was so great to see all of the vendors and to meet more at both events. I seriously love what I do. The vendors here in Vegas are bitchen. (Yeah. I just said bitchen. Oh, and killer. We're bringing that one back too.) I still have a few more vendors on my list to meet so be on the look out if I haven't stalked you yet.

I seriously feel the need to blog about one of my favorite things in the world right now. Mumo custom hair accessories. One of my hair dressers, Monet, owns Mumo,the company who makes custom hair accessories to die for. I probably own at least 15 pieces. As you all know I LOVE bows, flowers, headbands, feathers and basically anything I can stick in my hair. My only problem is I buy stuff from stores and it doesn't sit right on my head or the pins and clips are sticking out. The reason I am obsessed with Mumo is because 1) ALL of the pieces are custom made so you can get any piece or design in any color, style, or size and they are top quality because each piece is HAND made here in Vegas. (Not to mention you are supporting our terrible economy. Bam.) 2) They are all made AND designed my hair dressers, who are THE best in Vegas so these women understand how they will sit on your head. Nothing is worse than buying a cute hair piece and then you try to put it in your hair and it won't sit right because the comb or pin that it is on isn't shaped to your head. Monet's pieces are incredible. You can not find anything like them. She doesn't have a website up yet. Hopefully it will be up soon so you guys can see her beautiful pieces of art. Until then, if you are interested in any pieces, she carries a few at Euphoria in Boca Park or you can email me and I will put you in touch with her.

Anyway, I am off to watch the new season of Shear Genius. Love.

Oh, and if you are going to be at the Red Rock Country Club open house, stop by and say hello. I will be prepping Gina and Rachel who work at RRCC for their big night there. I seriously can't wait because they are stunning (always makes my job MUCH easier.) Oh and Congrats to Rachel! I just found out she has a bun in the oven. That is going to be one good looking kid.

PS I <3 Diet Coke.

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
www.LVStyleSirens.com
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

How do I edit this thing?

2010-01-12T16:09:00.000-08:00

Oh yes. These were the humbling words that I had to utter to Allyson Stagg this very afternoon. Why? Because it's been a second since I blogged. I know that you have noticed my absence and I sincerely apologize. For those of you who have forgotten me I am the other half of The Las Vegas Style Sirens. My name is Lauren Gardiner. My title is Chief Operating Officer. I have blonde hair and blue eyes and I like long walks on the Vegas strip....Just joking!! Who likes to walk the strip? Barfasaurus Rex. I wish that handing out pornography on greasy little pamphlets was not protected under the first ammendment, but our Founding Fathers in their wisdom have made it protected speech just like our delightful little blog. Thank you very much sirs that I can upset as many people as I like with this medium!!

On to more important things. I'd like to discuss the difference between "demanding excellence" and being a "picky biznatch". Allyson and I are known for our quest for perfection. It's what we strive for in every aspect of our lives. We know that it is impossible to achieve, but that does not negate the fun and adventure of the persute. However we also are very careful not to think that we know everything and persede to step on others toes and tell them how to do their jobs. I am here to draw a clear line in the sand on this issue. If you find yourself on the picky bitch side then please apologize immediately and we will forgive you.

For example as a makeup artist I consider it the absolute end of days when a woman (or man) tells me how to blend eyeshadow or apply lipliner or how to draw eyebrows. Do you mean to tell me that you are paying me a large sum of money to do a job that you so clearly could so much better than I? No. You are in my chair because you don't know the first thing about blending or appyling or drawing! And if you are one of those who thinks that they do let me just be the first one to tell you that in fact you do not. Your eyebrows are atrocious. Your lipliner is straight out of 1992 (chestnut and bubbles fans) and black and white eyeshadow don't blend together. They turn a hideous shade of grey. This is picky. And rude.

Demanding excellence is when I go to my hair dresser and require that there be not a spot of yellow in my perfectly white hair, that they use the toner that I request (because I spent the past ten years searching for the perfect one dang it!), and that my very mod bob is cut straight.

There's the line folks. Pick a side. Do not every presume to tell a professional how to do their job. If you do that says only 2 things about you. You did not do your research and therefore are not comfortable with the level of excellence that your vendor can provide you (which makes you dense since their is a wealth of information out there) and that you are a jerk face. We didn't start our own businesses providing services for our health! It's hard work and if you think you can do it better go get your own damn license.

Love,
Lauren Gardiner
COO
The Las Vegas Style Sirens
www.LVStyleSirens.com
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

Skin Care

2010-01-11T20:49:00.000-08:00

I can not even begin to tell you how important skin care is.

I have had so many women come up to me and say "Oh this foundation breaks me out. Oh that foundation breaks me out."

Sorry Ladies, but I am here to call your bluff. I personally do not believe that. If you have an allergy to a certain product, then that is a different story, but a foundation isn't going to cause you to break out. Not cleansing your face properly at night is what causes you to break out.

I am pretty certain that you are probably saying "Oh, but Ally, I wash my face with soap and water at night." I am here to tell you that that is not enough.

Many foundations contain products such as syllicone that are amazing for product wear time, however, it takes much more than a little soap and water to break down your foundation enough to wash off properly.

When you are washing your face at night, you should always start by breaking down your foundation with an oil cleanser. Let me make it very clear that by oil cleanser I DO NOT mean slopping vegetable oil all over your face. I am obsessed with L'Occitane Almond Apple Cleansing Oil. It smells like a green apple... what more can you ask for? I start by squirting a pump or two in my hand and just massaging it into my face to break down all of the makeup. I follow up with with Arbonne's NutriMinC Enzyme peel which I use as my moisturizer at night. You leave it on and wash it off in the morning and in the morning your skin feels like a dream!! It has pineapple extract in it so it smells great and feels like a dream on your skin. It removes all of the dead skin cells and basically gives you a new skin. Do you die? I do.

In the morning I wash my face to remove the enzyme peel. I then apply Arbonne's RE9 eye cream and facial moisturizer. (You will die for the eye cream. It feels like silk and you will probably want to bathe in it. I wouldn't reccomend this, simply because it would be very expensive.)

Obviously my routine isn't right for everyone. I just wanted to give you guys a little example of a few of the appropriate steps you should be taking. Everyone is different so you really have to find what works for you. You need to try different products until you figure out what works for your skin type. Just be sure to not change your products too often, or that could irritate your skin as well.

Also keep in mind that your skin changes with the weather. In the Summer, you will most likely use different skin care products than you use in the Winter. When my skin gets a little dry I swear by Fresh's Sugar Face Scrub and L'Occitane's Face Scrub Mud. Both of these products exfoliate, but they are gentle enough to use on any type of skin even if you are SUPER sensitive like me.

Oh, and please never forget sunscreen. Most products such as foundations and moisturizers actually include them in their formulas now, but always check just to be sure!

And never skip out on water. Hydration is the key to having amazing skin!

xoxox,
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las vegas Style Sirens
www.LVStyleSirens.com
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

Good things to come!

2010-01-07T22:11:00.000-08:00

Sorry I have been slacking on the blogging.

Things have been so busy lately, and to be quite honest, it doesn't look like they will be slowing down anytime soon! (That is a good thing!) However, lauren and I have made a promise to make blogging a priority. I have promised to blog at least 3 times a week and Lauren will be blogging a whopping 2 times a month. (That is the most I could squeeze out of her, sorry guys.)Maybe if you harrass her enough, she will put her smart ass imput here more often. She doesn't listen to a word I say , but she may listen to you guys.

Last night we were able to attend the Las Vegas Wedding Network meeting at Sienna and it was WONDERFUL! Millie at Sienna did an amazing job. She is so sweet. Andy Ebon (he is most famous for his marketing blog www.TheWeddingMarketingBlog.com) and Debbie Hansen (Producer of the Bridal Spectacular) were the guest speakers and it is always nice to listen to people with so much knowledge! (*SIDE NOTE* Yes Gina and Michael, I seriously only have 6 contacts. No, not 6,000. 6.) Lauren and I had a great time. It is always fun to meet new people. Let me tell you how much I love it when the first thing out of their mouth is "I don't know you, but you're my friend on Facebook..." I love you Facebook. <3

This month we will be busy preparing for the Bridal Spectacular at Cashman Center January 29th and 30th. On the 29th it will be from 6pm to 10pm (Grooms get in free! I know they are STOKED about that) and the 30th will be from 10am to 5pm. There will be 3 fashion shows! Friday it will be at 8pm and Saturday they will be at 12:30pm and 3:00pm. Be sure to check those out. Debbie has been kind enough to put her trust in yours truely and the rest of my Style Sirens to primp the beautiful models for all 3 fashion shows. We are SOOOOO excited beyond words and we have already started planning our looks and we can't wait to show everyone what we are all about.

Oh, and don't forget to stop by our booth and say hi. I will be giving out free hugs that day.

We will also be part of our beloved Memory Lane Videos new promo shoot that will priemiered and showcased at the Bridal Spectacular. That is all I can tell you about that. It is top secret, but I can tell you it is going to be AMAZING. I love those boys. They make my life complete. Their work is breathtaking.

Towards the end of this month and the beggining of next month, we will be collaborating with about 15 other wedding proffesionals to create a style board for the website StyleMePretty.com. This is one of the BEST wedding websites out there and I can't wait to work with everyone including Chelsea Nicole Photography, Randi from Naakiti Floral, Tracy Moore (who has been an angel putting all of this together, Kristen and the beauties of Gimmie Some Sugar Cakes, and Dawn from Coutour Bride, just to name a few of these wonderful vendors that we get to work with. Sorry guys, but this is pretty top secret as well soooo my lips are sealed. ;)

We will also be doing a few shoots with that little beauty Catherine from Weeds Floral and Adam from Artistic Imaging (PS I FINALLY met him and his wife last night and they are a delightful couple. Just a total pleasure to be around.) Can't wait for these. CAN'T WAIT!!

And to top it off I will be taking my first official business trip to San Francisco with Catherine at the end of February. BAM!

So as you all can see, we have a TON of amazing things going on the next few months.

Love you all! Goodnight!

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
www.LVStyleSirens.com
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

Highlighting and Contouring

2009-12-29T23:04:00.000-08:00

Some guy once said something like 'symmetrical faces are more attractive to the opposite sex.'

I say, this guy is a moron.

Having a perfectly symmetrical face does not make you beautiful. Give me a break. Besides, if your face isn't perfect you can always fix it with highlighting and contouring.

When people hear the term highlighting and contouring they often get scared because it does sound a little intimidating, but really, it isn't as complicated as it sounds. There certainly are tricks that professional makeup artists use that are a little more complex or time consuming but there are simple ways to highlight and contour that you can easily include in your day to day makeup routine.

Let me first start off by saying that high lighting is what you use when you would like to "show off" something, and contouring is what you use when you would like to "hide" something. Here are a few simple steps that you can add to your daily routine to help highlight and contour your beautiful bone structure.

Step 1 Apply a foundation that matches your skin tone. Blend foundation well at the jaw and hairline. Make the foundation "disappear" so that there are no visible lines.

Step 2 Dust your face with translucent powder.

Step 3 Suck in your cheeks to locate your cheek bones. Brush a small amount of matte bronzing powder under the cheek bones. Add bronzer to the bridge of your nose and at the temples. Blend all areas of bronzer well.

Step 4 Brush blush onto the apples of your cheeks. Pull the blush back towards your temples, making the line of brush narrower as you get closer to the hairline. Blend the blush into the hairline and the bronzer using clean fingertips or a clean powder brush.

Step 5 Use a lighter shade of powder to highlight your face. Brush highlighting powder on the bridge of your nose and around the outer corners of your eyes. Add a touch of highlighter to cheek bones, your chin and the temples.

Step 6 Blend all of the cosmetics well so there are no harsh lines. Smooth your makeup so that you can not tell where one color starts and another ends. Use a clean brush for the best blending results.

Hope these little tips help!

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
www.LVStyleSirens.com
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

I'm back... (For 2 seconds)

2009-12-28T20:38:00.000-08:00

Sorry guys. It has been a crazy couple of weeks. Between the holidays and everything, I have been one busy little bee.

Last Monday, we were in a horrific car accident. While stopped at a four way stop at 10pm at night, we were rear ended by a drunk driver going 60 mph who had no headlights on and never once hit her breaks. (Yeah, even after she slammed into the back of my mothers car, she continued to drive. Crazy, I know.) Luckily, my mother was driving a monster SUV so we were all okay for the most part. It was just so scary to turn around and see my babies in the back seat, covered in glass. The witch that hit us hid in her car. She never said sorry. She never came over to see if we were okay. And now she, and her insurance company will not return our phone calls. Needless to say, the past week has been a nightmare full of Dr. appointments, endless phone calls, and oh yeah, running a business during the holidays. Craziness.

This has to be short because I have 2,000 loads of laundry and a little post holiday baking to take care of, but I will be back tomorrow!

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
www.LVSTyleSirens.com
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

Hmmmm....

2009-12-16T22:44:00.000-08:00

So today I was studying my craft, as I love to do, and came across an article titled Which U.S City is the Vainest by Sarah at Total Beauty. I would really like to share this information with my readers.

No. 10: Louisville, Ky.

There's definitely more to Louisville than the Kentucky Derby and mint juleps. The city is home to approximately four plastic surgeons per 100,000 citizens (in a town of more than 700,000), and spending on hair, makeup and skin care products and services tops $5.5 million, according to Information Resources, Inc., a Chicago-based company that tracks and analyzes consumer spending trends.

No. 9: Minneapolis, Minn.

When it's frostbite weather outside just about 85 percent of the year, it's no wonder these Minnesotans spend a lot of time and dough their looks. That kind of cold wreaks havoc on hair, skin and nails. At last count (in 2002, the latest Census data available), there were 1343 "personal care" businesses in the City of Lakes, more than a thousand of which were hair salons.

No. 8: Charleston, W.Va.

No, it's not a typo. We're basing this entry on one staggering fact alone: the city has more indoor tanning salons per person than any other city in the country -- about 33.7 per 100,000 people, according to a study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. That's more than New York City, Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego and Miami combined. And it's not like we're talking about a place like Anchorage, Alaska, where you get only a few hours of sunlight every day in the winter. They've clearly missed the memo about UV rays making your skin look like carry-on luggage.

7. San Diego, Calif.

You'd think the natural beauty and year-round splendor of sunny, southern California would keep the population looking good, but they spend a fortune on their faces (and on hair and skin). There are 5.2 plastic surgeons per 100,000 people, and San Diegans spend more than $3 million annually on hair coloring alone. They spend at least $900,000 on cosmetics, but thanks to potentially brutal sun exposure, a whopping $6.2 million on skin care.

6. Dallas, Texas

As the saying goes, everything is bigger (but not necessarily better) in Texas, and that includes dollars and businesses devoted to making people pretty. There were more than 1,500 salons (hair and nail) in 2002 (the most recent data available from the Census), and we're guessing those numbers have dramatically increased, as the population has.

5. Los Angeles

Of course you thought Silicone City would top the list of cities obsessed with looks -- and it does in some categories. There are 4.1 plastic surgeons per 100,000 people, and Angelenos spend nearly $50 million a year on cosmetics, hair products and skin care. California has more hair restoration surgeons than any other state, and we're betting they're heavily concentrated here. Number of personal care businesses? More than 3,700 -- second only to New York City.

4. Salt Lake City, Utah

Shocking but true: the home city of the Mormon church boasts more plastic surgeons than any other city in the U.S.: for every 100,000 people, there are six plastic surgeons. Compared to other cities, Salt Lake has fewer businesses devoted to the art of beautifying (344 by Census count) but the citizens spent only slightly less on services each year: $2.2 million on hair coloring, $2.5 million on cosmetics, and nearly $4.5 million on skincare.

3. San Francisco, CA

Despite the city's au natural patchouli-hippie history, San Francisco ranks third in vanity industries and spending. Citizens blow about $11 million a year on skincare, $5.2 million on hair products and $1.3 million on makeup, and there are 5.4 plastic surgeons per 100,000 people

2. Miami, Fla.

Miamians aren't the healthiest specimens according to Census statistics on smoking, drinking and exercise, but what they lack in natural assets they more than make up for in beauty products and services like manis and pedis, facials, hair treatments, makeup and plastic surgery. There are 5.2 board certified plastic surgeons for every 100,000 people (in a city of nearly 425,000). And the bare-it-all citizens spend more than $23 million annually on cosmetics, skin care and hair products.

1. New York City

Sure, there are only 4.1 plastic surgeons per 100,000 people in the New York City region (compared to Salt Lake City's six), but the Big Apple outspends every other city in nearly every category -- more than $21 million on hair coloring, $32.5 million on skin care, $5.5 million on makeup and nearly $530,000 on hair growth products. According to the Census Bureau, there were more than ten thousand personal care businesses (think: hair and nail salons, day spas) in 2002 (the most recent year available) -- nearly three times the number in any other city. The state of New York also has the second highest number of hair restoration surgeons, and chances are they're centralized around The City.

Now that you have read that... am I the only person who is shocked that Las Vegas is not on there? We live in a city of night clubs, strip clubs, gambling, sun bathing, and we are not in the top ten most vain cities? I mean, I guess I am kind of happy about this, but very surprised to say the least. I once met a lady who lived here in Vegas and had an amazing job as an executive. She was a little older and had a few children, and her body had really taken a turn for the worst. She took out a loan to have some plastic surgery done and after it was done, she took a second job to pay off the loan more quickly. Her second job was an exotic dancer. I guess this puts my question, what came first the stripper or the boob job, to rest. On a positive note, she probably didn't have to pay much interest on that investment.

Just a little info I thought I would share with you guys!

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
www.LVStyleSirens.com
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

A few more wedding do's and don'ts...

2009-12-15T21:33:00.000-08:00

A friend of mine in the wedding industry brought a few more very important wedding do's and don'ts to my attention. I can see the obvious do's and don'ts (and the one's pertaining to beauty) but since I do not work every single job in the wedding industry, some things I tend to overlook.

1. Cash Bars. I have heard of this, but I never knew that people actually did this. A cash bar? Really? Come on you guys. It is rude to have a wedding, make people buy you gifts and travel a long distance to attend YOUR wedding and then make them pay for their own cocktails. It breaks ALL the rules of proper wedding ettiquette. Instead, you should opt for a beer and wine bar. I know some venues will allow you to bring in your own wine and possibly other alcohols for a small(er) fee. If alcohol is THAT important to you, then cut costs elsewhere, or just don't have it at all.

2. Do not wait a year to send out thank you cards to everyone. Whether they bought you a gift or not is irrelevant. (they should, but remember, they don't HAVE to) If they took time out of their busy schedule to celebrate your special day with you, you can at least send them a card telling them you appreciate them being in attendance. Also, please don't be lazy or stingy with thank you cards. After all of the time that the DJ's, wedding and event planners, photographers and videographers put into your wedding, I think that they deserve a little thank you card as well, don't you?

3. If you attend someones wedding, DO NOT come empty handed. Times are rough financially, but you can at least purchase (or even make) a beautiful card congratulating the new couple on their special day. Weddings cost money. They aren't free. You should show gratitude for being invited to such a special occasion.

4. Picture this. The groom is gussied up in his handsome tux at the alter patiently awaiting to get a glimpse of his beaming bride in her gorgeous wedding gown. In the back of the chapel, the flower girl is fussing with her dress and the ring bearer is picking his nose. The bridesmaids are all in matching gowns, arms linked with the groomsmen waiting for the wedding to begin. When suddenly, you show up late to the wedding and then try to "squeeze by" the bridal party. NO! You either be on time, or you can wait in the back. That is RUDE and will kill the whole ambience of the wedding.

5. I have found that it is popular to have the bride, groom, bridal party, and parents of the bride and groom stand at the door of the reception hall to greet and speak with guests. Don't you dare dash through (or ditch) the wedding party line. Do you really think the bride enjoys standing in that line in her VERY uncomfortable high heels while everyone else is enjoying her party? Probably not. Do me a favor and at least stop by and say "Hi."

6. Never ever wear jeans to a wedding. I thought this goes without saying, but apperently not. *sigh*

7. If you have a pre-determined menu, please identify the entree(s) on a place card. Your guests would like to enjoy their meal. They do not want to spend the entire 7 course meal playing the guessing game on what they are actually eating.

8. NO bridezillas. Don't act like one. In fact, don't even consider acting like one. This includes, but not limited to, snapping your fingers at people, being rude, or saying "It's my day." I do not understand why brides are rude to the people that are preparing her wedding. All I have to say, is if you snap your fingers at me while I am doing your wedding makeup, do not be surprised if you end up with raccoon makeup. I'm just saying.

9. Don't ask your family members and friends to do anything except be in your wedding party or enjoy your wedding. Don't ask them to bake your cake, do floral arrangements, be your photographer etc. Friends and family should enjoy the day, not work it. If it does happen, do not expect anyone to assist this family member/friend. No, I do not have extra ladders, scissors, know how to tier a cake, or make a bouquet. Worse, I have plenty to do rather than fill in the mistakes of others. HIRE PROFFESSIONALS! An event coordinator/ wedding planner will basically take care of everything. (PS I know some great ones if any of you soon-to-be brides need one!)

10. Please do not use an iPod in lieu of a DJ/Band. A DJ or band leader holds a very important role other than playing music. They control the flow, timing, and mood of the event with the venue, which an iPod cannot. Your guests did not spend $400.00 on a Williams Sonoma knife set that YOU registured for to hear the "Top 25 most played" playlist on your iPod.

I would like to give thanks to my anonymous friend for helping me out with those. :) If any of my other professional wedding vendor friends have some do's and don'ts that you would like to share, send them to me! I would love to share them with our readers.

On a personal note...

Tonight I was catching up on a little trashy reality TV and stumbled on the Bad Girls Club Season 4. First of all... is this really a show? Girls getting trashed and going to night clubs? I'm so mad that I didn't think to film this first. HELLO! I live in Vegas. I see this EVERY day! There was this particularly annoying girl on there named Natalie. She was running around LA screaming "I run LA! I run LA!" calling herself a "socialite". I was unimpressed because 1) I am fairly certain, that The Terminator runs LA, and all of California for that matter and 2)I would not know who she was without that show. Paris Hilton. Kim Kardashian. THOSE are socialites. You, Natalie, are not. Anyway, She brought on one of her friends named Marcus and introduced him as a celebrity saying she only goes to clubs VIP style and she only hangs with celebs. I looked at this kid and I didn't recoginze him (but what do I know) so I decided to google him. This is his credited professional work that I found on his website:

Red Tails (2009) David 'Deke' Watkins
Extreme Movie (2008) Wyatt
Taking Five (2007) Lincoln
Take the Lead (2006) Eddie
Roll Bounce (2005) Boo
The Nightmare Room: Scareful What You Wish For (2001) Ryan
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air(1994) Boy on dad's back (not credited)
Nothing to Lose (1997) Joey
One Night Stand (1997) Young Charlie
Moesha (1996-2001) Myles Mitchell
Thea as Cedric
Another Cinderella Story (2008) as Dustin "The Funk"
High School Musical 3: Senior Year (2008) Cameo: Boy at Troy's Party (not credited)
Martin : Marvin, Martin's Son

Fresh Prince of Bel Air... boy on dads back? HSM 3... boy at Troy's party? (Both "not credited") You're kidding me right? If that's a celebrity, then so am I. (Told you so, Shauna)

Ok, so maybe I haven't been in a TV show. Well not YET at least. My reality show should be coming soon.

Ryan Seacrest if you are reading this, I need my own reality show. Stat. kthnxbye.

Also, last night I watched Bank of Hollywood which is a show where people go on there and ask ridiculously rich celebs for money. I just want to clarify that Ryan Seacrest went inside my mind, and took this idea right out of there. I have been saying we need to do this type of show for years! For the most part, the people that went on there had legitimate needs and it was sweet to watch people helping other people. That was until this idiotic couple stomps on the stage and asks for $75,000 for their "dream wedding." I almost died. It got worse when they showed photos of the expensive designer wedding gown she wanted to purchase, the castle they wanted to swap vows in, and the TWO CARAT TIFFANY'S cushion cut diamond ring that she wanted. Who do they think they are to just waltz up onto that stage and ask for that kind of money for a wedding? Icing on the cake... they both don't have jobs.

To the couple who had the courage to do this: You two are materialistic LOSERS. If you are "so in love" then drive to Las Vegas and get married at the drive thru for $65.00. You do not need a 2 carat Tiffany's ring. You do not need to get married in a castle. You do not need a designer gown. You need to get a job and a life. Thank you.

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
www.LVstyleSirens.com
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

Holiday Parties... Look the part!!!

2009-12-14T16:23:00.000-08:00

It is Mid December ladies! I know you all have holiday events, parties, and New Years coming up. So what is the hot look this year?

I think everyone can agree that you can't go wrong with a beautiful smokey eye. This winter, it is ALL about the beautiful dark, sultry eye. (And LACE! I am SO happy about that!)

Before you get nervous or excited, let me just clarify that a smokey eye DOES NOT mean that you plaster black from your eyelid to your brow bone, circle it around your eye and then slather your brow bone in shimmery white eye shadow. Ugh. Barf.

There are several ways to do a smokey eye. Everyone has a different opinion on how a smokey eye should look, and everyone has their favorite ways to do it. Today I am going to walk you through one of my favorite ways to do an amazing fool proof smokey eye.

1. Start with a clean, well moisturized face.

2. ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS start with your eyeshadow. Eyeshadow will always fall underneath your eye whether it be light or dark. If it falls, and you have already applied concealer and foundation, when you wipe it off you will have to reapply your concealer and foundation. Save yourself the few extra minutes and always start with your eyes.

3. Apply a neutral primer all over your eye. I love Paint Pots by MAC in Painterly and Soft Ochre.

4. Grab a black eyeliner that is NOT smudge proof or water proof. (I love Le Crayon Khol in Ebony by Lancome) Color on your eye lid from the lash line to the crease. It does not need to be filled in completely and it does not have to be neat.

5. Take a synthetic eyeshadow brush and blend the eye liner so it turns into a smokey grey and it is evenly distributed all over the eye lid from the lashline to your crease. I love brush #242 by MAC.

6. Take a dark brown eyeshadow and pat it on top of the blended eyeliner. I love Handwritten by MAC.

7. Take a blending brush (brush #224 by MAC) and use a neutral MATTE or almost matte high light color (I love Brule for light skin and Era for medium to dark skin. Both are by MAC) and blend from underneath the brow bone to the crease. Blend the light color and the dark color so that you have a soft transition between the dark brown and the light highlight color.

8. If you would like to add a little more definition to the shape of your eye, or the colors are not blending as well as you would like, take a medium brown and use the #224 brush to softly brush it back and forth in your crease. I love Cork by MAC for all skin tones.

9. If you want to add a little glitz and glam, dust a super sheer coat of loose glitter over the dark brown shadow on your eye lid. I love Reflects Gold or Antique Gold by MAC.

10. Follow with a few coats of black mascara, a pair of false lashes (full or half set... you chose!), and a little black liquid or gel eyeliner and BAM! Smokey eye in full effect.

I personally do not like to put any eyeliner on the bottom, but if you want to, you certainly can. I think it looks really good if you put it in the water line or smudge a little bit of dark shadow right under your lash line.

This smokey eye is cool because it doesn't need to look totally perfect. It is okay if it looks a little messy. That is what makes it so sexy.

Finish off the look with a foundation of your choice, a neutral blush, and a neutral lipstick, and you are good to go.

When you wear a smokey eye, it is good to keep the rest of your makeup pretty neutral. If you start to feel a little daring, you can wear an intense lip such as a rich berry or bright red.

Rememeber, there are NO rules when it comes to makeup. Ok, I lied. There are a few tiny little rules, but for the most part, it is free game! Have fun and enjoy being a woman. Just rememeber, no matter what you wear, you need to rock it!

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
www.LVStyleSirens.com
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

Marry me David Tutera

2009-12-12T00:27:00.000-08:00

If you know anything about me, you know I love reality TV. Thank goodness for Tivo which makes it possible for me to catch up on all 100 of reality shows after Cash (my 1 year old son) goes to bed.

One of my favorite shows is My Fair Wedding with David Tutera. I would die for this man. Literally. I am known for being a little sassy, and sometimes saying what is on my mind without thinking first, and so is he. We are a match made in heaven.

Being in the wedding industry, I guess I just assume that some things are obvious when it comes to planning a wedding. Well, I was wrong. By watching My Fair Wedding, I have learned that to some people, nothing is off limits. In order to make this a little less complicated, I have compiled a list of wedding do's and dont's that David Tutera and I can both agree on.

1. Emerald Green and Purple are a HUGE no no for wedding colors. In fact, these colors are not appropriate for ANY occation. Oh wait, Mardi Gras. Yep. That's about that only time these colors would be appropriate.

2. Balloons are not for weddings. They are for children's birthday parties and High School Homecoming floats. No balloon arches. No balloon centerpieces. No no no.

3. A strip tease is never appropriate for your first dance at your wedding reception. Seriously. (Yes Shauna, you MAY take off your garter to "Cherry Pie")

4. Enough with the tulle! I can deal with a little bit of tulle. (And by a little bit, I mean 1/2 a yard) But really ladies...really? Dresses made of tulle. Table cloths made of tulle. Chair covers made of tulle. Ugh. Itchy, wrinkly, and messy. Those are the three words that come to mind when I think of tulle.

5. A brides bouquet (actually ANY bouquet) should NEVER be made of sponges. I'm just gonna throw that one out there.

6. A brides bouquet (or any bouquet for that manner) should never be made of hot glue, glitter, and fake flowers.

7. Actually, just stay away from hot glue as much as possible when it comes to making things for your wedding.

8. Actually, just stay away from making things for your wedding as much as possible. That is what professionals are for.

9. A sun dress is NOT the same as a wedding dress.

10. Please limit the number of items you place in your hair on your wedding day. You do not need a tiara, veil, flower, pendant, and glitter all at once. I think one or two items should be sufficient. One would be even better, but I can deal with two.

11. Wedding dresses are typically white or ivory. Lets stay away from colored undergarments.

12. If you live in the same city as the venue where you wedding will be held, go view it in person. Do not book it online. If you are unable to see your wedding venue in person because you are having a destination wedding, be sure to do tons of research. Make sure that you know exactly what you are getting. Read reviews, make a few phone calls, and don't be afraid to ask questions.

13. In general, DO YOUR RESEARCH. Don't be lazy. This is your wedding! I know it can be overwhelming, but this is a very important day. Be sure that the vendors that you are going to be dealing with can deliver exactly what you want, at a price you can afford.

14. Trends change, and they change quickly. What was considered "cool" or "cute" 10 years ago, may not be considered cool now.

15. Have some manners on your wedding day. No one wants to see you in your beautiful gown, drunk, swearing, and burping with a cigarette hanging out of your mouth. Feel free to take an etiquette class if necessary.

I am saying all of these things and I am half joking. Well, actually, I am dead serious, but I am saying them in a joking manner.

My point is, if you think you know everything, let me just tell you right now, you don't. Wedding professionals do. Trust what they say. Before you even think about planning a wedding, sit down and figure out what is important to you. Times are rough financially and everyone is on a budget. You need to invest your money into what is important to you on your special day. Call around and get pricing for everything that is on your WANT list for your wedding. When you snap back into reality because you find out how much things REALLY cost, narrow that down to the NEED list. I always recommend hiring an event and/or wedding planner in your area. This will relieve a ton of stress. They are familiar with vendors in your area, and more importantly, the different vendors style and pricing. They can point you in the right direction and help you create the wedding of your dreams on your budget.

PS I am so excited because Lauren and I have a couple new things that we will be doing on the blog. Everyone keep posted because they all involve our readers!

PSS I now have 8 followers on this blog! YES!

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
www.LVStyleSirens.com
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

Foundation Nation

2009-12-10T21:16:00.000-08:00

Let me start off by saying that your face and neck will always be lighter than the rest of your body. It does not matter if you fake and bake or spray tan, they will always be lighter. I understand that it's not attractive if your face resembles Casper the friendly ghost and your body looks like you have spent a month on the beaches of Cabo, however, there are ways to handle this situation properly.

ALWAYS match your foundation to the skin tone on your face. I do not recommend purchasing a foundation that you can't try on before you buy it. To know if it is the correct foundation for you, you need to be able to see what it looks like on your skin, feel the texture to see if you like it, and make sure it is the appropriate coverage for you. Foundation is one makeup item you should not mind splurging on. (OK, So I splurge on every type of makeup, but if I could only splurge on one, foundation would be it.) Going to a professional makeup counter is a great idea because the artists that work there are familiar with how to match a foundation and they can explain their products in detail. ALWAYS have them apply it for you and DO NOT buy it right then. Wear it for the rest of the day. Walk outside, and look at your face in the sun light. Double check to make sure it is the right shade, and make sure it lasts through your daily activities. Ask for a sample (they should always give you at least a small one.) and use that sample for a day or two. If you like it, then go back and purchase it.

If you need to darken your face and neck to match your body, use a bronzer. Apply your foundation as you normally would, follow with a light powder such as a blot powder to set the foundation. Then follow with a pressed, MATTE bronzer. (I love Matte Bronze by MAC) If you do not apply a light powder between the bronzer and your foundation, the bronzer will "stick" to the foundation in certain spots and look uneven. You can apply as many coats of bronzer as necessary to bring your face up to the appropriate shade. Avoid using bronzers with shimmer in them. You do not need your entire face and neck covered in shimmer. Gross. Shimmer should only be used to highlight certain areas. Remember, shimmer down ladies, shimmer down.

NOTE: Orange foundation looks good on no one. Let me repeat that. NO ONE. Not even you. Slathering your face in foundation five shades too dark is not going to solve anything. All it is going to do is make you look orange and uneducated. Not to mention, it gives you a crusty makeup line. Ew.

You should have at least two different foundations that you switch out for different seasons. For example, in the Summer, I like to have a foundation with a little less coverage and I like it to feel light on my skin. I usually go for a mineral powder. It is so hot here in Las Vegas, so a powder works really well for me during the summer. In the winter, I like a little bit more coverage so I tend to switch to a medium to full coverage liquid foundation.

Some foundations I LOVE are:

Bare Minerals SPF 15: I love this powder foundation. It is like magic fairy dust and is perfect for a sheer to medium coverage. It does have a little bit of radiance (NOT shimmer :)

Studio Sculpt SPF 15 by MAC: This foundation is a mix between a cream and a liquid and is perfect for medium to full coverage. It glides right on and stays in place all day. I like to rub it between my hands before applying it to warm it up so that it glides on my face flawlessly.

Lancome Absolue Makeup SPF 20: This is a foundation that feels like a whipped dream on your face. It gives beautiful full coverage without feeling heavy or looking muddy and thick on your skin. It is a little expensive, but very worth it. Whenever I wear this foundation, I always get a ton of compliments on my skin.

Studio Tint SPF 15 by MAC: This liquid foundation is a simple and to the point tinted foundation. It is super sheer coverage, and works well for people who don't like much coverage in a foundation. It is also perfect for those days you are going to hang out by the pool and you want to have a little something on, but don't want people to know about it. It also has the built in SPF. Perfection!!

NOTE: All of these foundations have SPF... obviously that is very important!

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
www.LVStyleSirens.com
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

Lip liner is sexy!

2009-11-21T21:53:00.001-08:00

Let me start off by saying, that you should ALWAYS wear lip liner. It doesn't matter if you wear lipstick, or just lip gloss, lip liner helps to make your lip look more polished and prevents your lip product of choice from running and bleeding everywhere. Nothing is worse than feather lips! Don't be lazy. Put forth the extra two seconds, and apply a lip liner, ladies.

Today, I was asked a very good question. What color of lip liner should I wear?

Oh man... where to begin? I LOVE lip liner. I probably own every color known to mankind. You can honestly mix and match any color that you would like, but when you are just starting out it is good to match the lip liner to the lip product that you are wearing. I think that matching the lip liner to the shade you are wearing is always a safe bet. You can go up to two shades darker than the lip product that you are wearing and still get the same, natural effect.

Lip liner can also help you out in sticky situations. Lets say that you purchase a lipstick that you THINK you like while you are at the store, but when you get home, you realize it it wayyy to brown for you. All you would need to do is choose a lip liner shade in the same color scheme as your lipstick that has a little bit more of a pink tone, and apply it. This will help tone down the brown in the lipstick and give you a more pink tone.

If you know me at all, you know I die for red lipstick. I wear it ALL the time. I used to wear it with red lip liner, but once my lipstick would start to wear off, I would get this gross red ring around my lips where my lip liner was. I was talking to Lauren about this problem, and she simply said "You are wearing the wrong lip liner. You need to wear a natural one that matches your lips, or maybe a shade or two darker." Man. She is brilliant! Once I started wearing a more natural lip liner, I never had that problem again. So, if you are going to wear a red lipstick, go with a more neutral lip liner. We love Creamola and Cream o Spice (Both by MAC) to go with any shade of red.

To apply lip liner, simply follow your natural lip shape. Make sure it is symmetrical and even. Lauren likes her lip liner light and right on the lip line. I, on the other hand love Pam Anderson style. I like it dark, and I always over draw my lips. CAUTION: This takes practice. You don't want to look like a hot mess with a bad case of lip filler, so ask a professional to teach you and practice a few times before wearing it out in public.

So many women get scared of lip products, and I can't help but wonder why? Lips are beautiful and sexy and they should be enhanced. You can wear whatever color of lipstick you would like. I have women ALL of the time say "Oh, I can't wear that color!" and I say "YES YOU CAN!" It is all about learning to be comfortable with wearing color on your lips, finding the right shade of that particular color, and a corresponding lip liner. It may be a little bit scary at first because it is something you are not used to, but give it a try! I challenge all of you to wear a different lip color every day this week, that you typically would not wear. What do you have to lose? It's Autumn, so try rich Burgundies, deep reds, mocha browns, and deep mauves. I expect a report back! (Especially from you, Ms. Shauna.)

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
www.LVStyleSirens.com
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

Blondes have more fun?

2009-11-19T23:13:00.000-08:00

I have a feeling many brunettes and redheads would disagree with that statement. I personally don't know if it is true or not considering blonde is all I know, but I like to believe it is. :)

Lauren and I always get asked how we get so blonde. The answer? Bleach. It is really not that complicated. That may sound a little bitchy, but I don't mean it that way. I only speak the truth.

I think what people mean to ask is how to we maintain our blonde hair, so here we go.

I get my hair done by Lauren Mortensen at Euphoria in Boca Park. She's amazing, but she only works Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and every other Saturday so book in advance! Lauren G. gets her hair done by Monika Page at Scandals Salon. Monika only works Wednesday and Saturday, so once again... book in advance. We both go every 4 to 6 weeks to get our roots done because if we don't, we look like white trash. To get my golden locks, all it takes is a magic potion that Lauren M. mixes up and 20 minutes under the dryer and BAM. I'm a whole new woman. Lauren G.'s platinum blonde takes a little longer to process. She uses bleach and a 40 volume (which by the way, makes your head feel like it is being attacked by 1,000 fire ants) and 40 minutes to an hour NOT under the dryer. Lauren G. likes her hair platinum blonde. I, on the other hand prefer a more golden tone. While I am under the dryer waiting to my hair to process and reading trashy magazines such as Star and OK!, I also have Lauren M. apply a clear toner which helps make my hair super shiny.

To me, there is nothing worse than my hair looking frizzy, dry, fried, and disgusting. Since my hair is thin, I have to do a lot of at home maintenance to keep my bleached locks looking decent. I don't wash my hair everyday. I try to wash it every other day, or even every 3 days. Dirty hair styles WAY better anyway. I use Pureology Shampoo and Conditioner (The one in the purple tube. I forgot what it is called, and honestly, I am too lazy to get up and go look) I love it because I don't need that much to get my hair clean, and the conditioner has something minty in it that makes my scalp tingle with joy. Also, about twice a week in the shower, I do a deep conditioner called Coral Therapy by RUSK. It smells AMAZING and it makes my hair so silky. I leave it in my hair for about 5 minutes while I shave my legs or something then rinse it out. After I get out of the shower, I use a leave in conditioner by TIGI called Rockaholic. It smells like grapes and sprays right on. I then brush it with a soft bristle brush and slap on some RUSK Sheer Brilliance shine serum. I love this stuff. it makes my hair shiny and soft. I then let it air dry. I NEVER blow dry it because lets be honest, I do enough heat damage to my hair. I also do another deep treatment called Dumb Blonde (No, it is not only for blondes) by TIGI. I just put it on my dry hair in the evening, leave it on for a few hours while I blog, play on Facebook, do homework, or watch trashy reality TV and then just rinse it out when I take a shower that night. Once every 2 to 3 weeks, I also do a clear toner at home which I put on my hair, leave on for about an hour, and then wash off in the shower. A clear toner just seals the hair to make it shiny. (Obviously, I am obsessed with shiny hair.)

As far as styling, I am down for any type of hair style. I wear my hair curly a lot. I used to use a curling iron, but I have recently discovered hot rollers. Bananas. They give me a ton of volume and they are do easy! I just heat them up, put them in, leave them in while I do my makeup, take them out and BAM! We're done. When I straighten my hair, curl my hair, or use hot rollers, I always spray on RUSK Thermal Spray on my hair. It helps protect against the heat damage and I love it.

A few more of my favorite products are Masterpiece hairspray by TIGI Bed Head. It is a hairspray AND a shine spray in one with an amazing hold and it smells like pineapple. I literally die. If you like textured hair use Wired by RUSK. Put a little on your wet hair and let it air dry. Play Dirty by Short Sexy Hair is the best dry wax ever. Just be careful not to spray too much on or your hair might look a little greasy!

So now that I've told you a little about my favorite products and my golden locks, if you see me at Walmart, in my yoga pants, a hoodie, and messy hair, please don't judge me. Everyone needs a day or two off, especially when you are as high may as I am.

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
www.LVStyleSirens.com
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

Long time, no see.

2009-11-18T22:57:00.000-08:00

It was brought to my attention tonight by my favorite stalker, that we have not noveled in over a month. This is NOT okay and you all have my deepest apologies. We will try to improve on our noveling skills.

We have had a very busy past month and a half which is crazy because typically, November and December move by in a snail-like manner due to the lack of weddings, photo shoots, and events. Not this year though! This year is full of firsts for us, I guess. Moving on....

Lets do a quick little replay of the last few weeks, shall we?

Well, first of all, we had an amazing photo shoot with London 5 Photography. It was a Dia De Los Muertos themed shoot and it went brilliantly. Jessica and Joe were are models, and Jessicas obsession with Americas Next Top Model was much appreciated. She knew how to execute every pose flawlessly. We went up into these caves (which we hiked 5 miles to get too) to do the shoot. All of the pieces in the puzzle just seemed to fall into place that day. I am so happy with the out come and I can not wait to see more photos!

The night of our Dia shoot, we met Adam Trujillo with Imagine photography and he pitched a shoot idea to us. Once we heard the words "Mad Hatter" we were sold. We were sooooo stoked to work with him, Weeds Floral, and Gimmie Some Sugar cakes, that Lauren and I could barely stand it. The next two weeks flew by full of weddings and an amazing VIP event at Red Rock Hotel and Casino. (PS the spa at Red Rock is GORGEOUS. I would literally DIE to work there doing makeup every day of my life. *hint hint* ;) Anyway, the night before the photo shoot, Lauren and I were chowing down sushi from Sushi Loca (She was eating the Pearl Special and I was eating Tuna) discussing our game plan and going over the makeup looks we had designed for the Mad Hatter photo shoot the next day. 8:30pm rolls around, Lauren is packing up her stuff to leave when suddenly, we both look at both of our phones. We each had 10 missed calls from an unknown number. Long story short, it was a celebrity client wanting our services for the next day. (Yes, the same day as the Mad Hatter shoot, AND PS the Latin Grammys!!!) Needless to say, we were BOOKED BOOKED BOOKED! (and stressed beyond words) We finally worked it all out and got our schedules together for the following day. We decided Lauren would go to the celebrity client and I would go to the Mad Hatter shoot and we would fill in the blanks with other employees.

The next day:

The Mad Hatter photo shoot...It was tough. I'm not gonna lie. I was trying to put foundation on our beautiful model Eva, and the dust brought up from the 200MPH wind was just layering on her face. The wind was so strong, it literally blew the false eyelashes I had put on her, off of her eye AFTER the glue dried. My makeup kit STILL has dust in it after I have cleaned it out several times. The wind knocked the cake and the flowers around everywhere. It was crazy, but the pictures turned out amazing! Weeds Floral, Imagine Photography, and Gimmie Some Sugar, all helped to make this photo shoot a total success and I had such a blast working with them!

After the photo shoot, I was rushing home to pick up my son and I ruin my car driving back to the main road from the shoot. By ruin. I mean total. I need a new engine, radiator, and a whole bunch of other things that I can't remember the names of. Sucked BIG time! I called a tow truck to come get my car and Mrs. Lauren Gardiner to come pick me up. As I sat at a dirty truck stop in Jean, NV, filthy and covered in dust from head to toe, with no car, I could not help but laugh at the fact that Lauren was in a Suite at the Mandalay Bay chummin' it with our celeb and the rest of the Style Siren crew. Amazing. Amazing. Amazing.

Oh and did I mention, we still had another 5 hour job that night AFTER all of this? Yeah. That was definitely the longest day in history.

I'm honestly tired just writing about all of this. I promise I will novel more. If you all would email me your beauty questions, I would be happy to answer them. This also helps keep me motivated to novel.

Have a wonderful night everyone! Don't forget follow is on Twitter, Myspace, and be our Fan on Facebook! (You can find it on my page www.Facebook.com/AllysonStagg)

xoxoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com
www.LVStyleSirens.com

Who wore it better?

2009-09-26T17:36:00.000-07:00

So I have to post two different posts since I can't figure out how to write and paste pictures in the same blog. So I will write out the ballot so that you can just cut, copy, paste, and vote!

Who wore it better?

1) HOT MESS.

Lindsay Lohan
or
Amy Whinehouse

2)INTERRUPTING.

Kanye West at the First Supper
or
Kanye West at the VMA's

3) THE MUG SHOT.

Misha Barton
or
Nicole Richie

4) THE iPHONE.

Katie the camera girl
or
Cali, our hair expert

5) BLING.

Flava Flav
or
Maury. Our favorite MJ impersonator?

6) GRANDMA GLASSES.

Aimee in PR
or
Luren drinking diet coke?

7) THE 80's.

Romy and Michelle
or
Ally and Lauren

8) THE SMOKEY EYE.

Ben and Ozzy
or
Ally

Now please take a minute, view the pictures below and then vote!

ENJOY!

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
www.LVStyleSirens.com
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

Who wore it better pictures...

2009-09-26T16:33:00.000-07:00

Q and A for the ladies...

2009-09-20T22:34:00.000-07:00

I have had a busy, yet wonderful day.

I just got home from another super fun dinner at Sushi Loca! In attendance were Ricky Gulati and John Sanchez from Memory Lane Video ,www.MLVNV.com ,the most amazing videographers in Las Vegas and soon to be the world. Director of Catering at Aliante Station and super Style Siren groupie, Shauna Lederman! And my one and only beauty and partner in crime, Lauren Gardiner. I love these people. We always have the best conversations and when it comes to advice and brainstorming, they are genius!

I am often asked several questions by ladies who contact me to inquire about our services so I thought I would "novel" real quick about them.

Q: Who are you and exactly what do you do?

A: The Las Vegas Style Sirens are a completely mobile beauty team consisting of hair stylists, makeup artists, estheticians, massage therapists, and nail technicians. We come to your hotel room, home, or venue of choice and perform services that you would find in a salon and spa at your leisure.

Q: What makes your company different from the other companies in town?

A: The Las Vegas Style Sirens pride themselves on only hiring people who are licensed and/or trained in their specific craft. This means, if you book a hairdresser through us for your wedding day, you can rest assured that not only will they be licensed in cosmetology, they will also have trained with some of the most elite hair dressers in town and hold a position as a hair stylist at a high end salon here in Vegas where they are constantly practicing their craft. Also, when you book through the Las Vegas Style Sirens, we understand that your time is valuable and we will always keep that in mind. If you were to book us to do your hair and makeup for an event, we would not send just one person to do the work. We would be sure to send a professionally trained makeup artist, and a professionally trained and licensed cosmetologist to you so that they could work on you simultaneously and have you done in half the time instead of just one person doing your hair and then doing your makeup. If you are a bride with a large bridal party, we will be sure to send the correct amount of artists to your venue and have you finished and ready to go in a timely manner.

Q: Do you guys bring your own supplies, or will you use my stuff?

A: We will bring everything! That is the beauty of our services. All you have to do is make a simple phone call, set up an appointment, and we will show up with everything necessary to perform the services booked.

Q: How much do your services cost?

A: It depends on how many services you are booking and what services you are booking. If you call and speak with us directly, we will be able to give you a more accurate quote and explain our services in more detail.

Q: How far in advance do I need to book?

A: We do not have a deadline for appointments, however it is on a first come, first serve basis. It is better to book sooner than later to ensure you get the date that you are requesting.

Q: Do you guys only do weddings?

A: Absolutely not. We do all types of events such as in office events, fashion shows, birthdays, school dances, bachelorette parties, birthdays, personal consultations, spa parties etc. The possibilities are endless, and we are always willing to accommodate you for whatever you need. We are very flexible!

Q: Do you sell gift certificates?

A: We sure do! These make great gifts for bridal showers, birthdays, Christmas, or just to say thank you to someone. Everyone loves to be pampered!

Q: Do you offer packages?

A: Yes! Since all of our clients are different and have such different needs, all of our packages are custom built. We will work together with you to find the perfect package for any occasion, all you have to do is call and ask and we will make it happen!

Hope these help you guys!

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
702.807.4636
www.LVStyleSirens.com
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

Aloha!

2009-09-19T19:49:00.000-07:00

Today Monet and I had the honor to work with a bride named Stacy Wood on her wedding. First of all let me say that Stacy is one of the sweetest people I have ever met! She is spunky, fun, and just a pleasure to be around.

Her wedding was a luau theme which was a dream! Stacy was open minded which made it easy for us to have fun and do something a little out of the ordinary. We did some non traditional color schemes with her makeup which were beautiful on her perfect olive skin, and we got to use some beautiful lime green Hawaiian flowers in her hair done by the famous Monet McRay (Monet also makes custom hair pieces and accessories called MuMo if anyone is interested. They are sold at Euphoria in Boca Park or you can email us and we will put you in contact with her.) Stacy is such a beautiful bride and person and Dave is a lucky guy!

Her daughter Krista is just a vision as well! Her skin is flawless (good genes run in this family, believe me! Stacy's mother is breathtaking as well.) and her hair is just as flawless. And her step daughter Jenny is hilarious and such a character.

I can not say enough good things about this group of ladies. We had a blast with them and it was so special to be part of this day with them. I cannot wait to see the wedding photos captured by none other than the amazing Wendhy Jeffers! (www.WendhyJeffers.com)

If you guys haven't been to Aliante Station yet, you seriously need to go. Now. The property is amazing. It is like a mini Red Rock. They have great food, an awesome pool with cabanas, movie theater AND the most amazing staff ever. Shauna in catering, Jewels in beverage, Elliot in nightlife, and Sterling in the Access Showroom, are just a few of the people who help make this place so fun and professional. If you ever need a venue for an event, or just a great place to have dinner and a movie, this is definitely a place to look into. I just love it there!!! (www.AlianteStation.com)

Today we booked a VIP event in November at Red Rock Station, and I can't wait to meet all of the incredible people up there and have the opportunity to work in their GORGEOUS spa!

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
www.LVStyleSirens.com
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

It's here!

2009-09-18T19:30:00.001-07:00

The View newspaper did an article on Super Star Karaoke at Aliante Station Hotel and Casino and the Style Sirens are featured in it. :)

Go Cali and Lauren!

Thanks Aliante for letting us be part of this amazing project. If you guys haven't come, you really should. It is a ton of fun!

http://www.viewnews.com/2009/VIEW-Sep-15-Tue-2009/North/index.html

Hope everyone is enjoying the new website!

PS Huge contract was established for the Style Sirens today! Can't wait for you all to see the new project we will be taking part of! It's top secret for now, so be patient!

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
http://www.lvstylesirens.com/
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

Stealing the spotlight...

2009-09-15T22:57:00.000-07:00

Lauren. You blogged. So what? No one even cares when you blog anymore. They would much rather hear from me because I am loyal and blog on a somewhat regular basis.

Just kidding. I'm obsessed with you. For all of you that don't know, we are PIC's. (Partners in crime) And Lauren, I am super happy you blogged today (especially considering the topic!) however I am seriously dying waiting to hear what little Miss Conservative has to say in her blog about Brazilian waxing. DYING! Literally lying.

For all of you who didn't catch Laurens blog yet...

OUR WEBSITE IS LAUNCHING AT MIDNIGHT TONIGHT, SEPTEMBER 16, 2009!!!

The excitement inside me is something I can not contain. This is our baby. We have built every little detail of this website by hand. Lauren and I have spent a countless number of hours over the past 8 months (Yes, you heard me correctly. EIGHT MONTHS!) perfecting this site. From the colors, to the pictures, to the font and size of the text, to the placement of the text, we designed it all! Snaps for Ally and Lauren!

I would seriously like to thank Jesse and Heather at www.PoshWebDesign.com for being so patient with us, respecting our vision, and putting so much work into all the little details we requested. Lauren and I were stalking them everyday and although they probably wanted to ring our pretty little necks, they remained kind and professional.

Please join us at midnight for our cyber launch party! Thanks for all of your love, support, and good wishes. We are so blessed to have so many wonderful friends and Style Siren Groupies! (Shauna and Monika... ;)

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

AND NOW...

WWW.LVSTYLESIRENS.COM

YAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYA

12 am on a Wednesday in the year 2009.

2009-09-15T22:09:00.000-07:00

Holy freakin' hell! I think it has been a really long time since I blogged because I couldn't even remember the dang password to get in to post! And if you think that's funny Ally blogged on Friday ( or was it Thursday?) and she couldn't remember the password. We haven't even been drinking! Yet....

So I am here to announce the official launch of The Style Sirens website! www.lvstylesirens.com

It has been a long long time coming. It will be up on Wednesday September 16, 2009 at MIDNIGHT! Our web design team is working furiously to finish up last minute details because you know Ally and I don't do anything half assed and then it's DONE!!! This is a momentous event. I want to thank Heather and Jesse at Posh Web Design (www.poshwebdesign.com) for all their hard work. Especially Jesse because he's the flash guru over there and took the brunt of our B.S. He did an amazing job and if you need websites I wouldn't use anyone else!! Jesse is also a wiz at designing logos so check them out!!

By the way I would love to tell you all about the brazilian experience, but I need some time to think how to write about it without keeling over dead from sheer embarrassment. It is a humiliating experience that is chock full of flippin comedy, but I just can't do it right now.

So anyway please join Allyson and I at MIDNIGHT with your cocktail of choice for a party celebrating our new website! This definitely calls for a little Kim Crawford, but because Ally and I were buying so much of it they got a big head and raised the price $5 a bottle! Hello...Recession!! It's just to good not to purchase though. So thanks to us that beautiful New Zealand vineyard is still in business and pumping out a lovely profit. Hope they feel good about it. Cheers!!

Lauren Gardiner

COO

The Las Vegas Style Sirens

www.LVStyleSirens.com

TGIF

2009-09-11T23:08:00.000-07:00

Excited

That is the only word that comes to mind right now. I just saw the final rough draft of our new website and I am so excited. It is amazing. There are just a few minor things that need to be updated and then it will be going LIVE! YAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYA! Once again, a million thanks to Jessie and Heather at www.PoshWebDesign.com for making all of our dreams come true and for being patient with us. We are very, very picky, I know.

Moving on... I have to tell you a ridiculously funny story about a texting conversation I had with an anonymous person.

It started off by her and I talking about how her father forgot her birthday for the 2nd year in a row. (What a lame-o huh?) She proceeds to tell me about how he needs to get her an amazing gift to redeem himself from this situation, but unfortunately he is the worlds WORST gift-giver. (FYI diamonds and pearls are always an amazing place to start fellows...) Apparently he always gives gift cards to places like Home Depot and Best Buy for his daughter's birthdays. Kill me. I am laughing about the thought of how awkward this must be and telling her I am super sorry. (Wait! It gets better.) Then our conversation turned to this...

Friend: Well, that's not that bad. Lou (her husband) got me a clip on lamp and smooth away for my birthday. I wanted to hit him.

Ally: That is so funny. Is that what you asked for?

Friend: Ummm... Not hardly.

Ally: Wow. That's hilarious. Did you ask him what inspired him to purchase that for you?

Friend: I told him the other day that I wanted a PedEgg but he got it confused with Smooth Away. And the lamp is because I keep him awake when I am reading at night. Not ok at all. I also explained to him that just because I want a PedEgg does not mean I want it for my birthday.

Ally: I'm blogging about this later. This is to hilarious to pass up.

Friend: Well Lou says that birthdays are for practical gifts and Christmas is for big gifts. I disagree but if that is how he feels, I will give him a practical birthday gift this year like some paint for the outside of the house.

Ally: *thinks to herself* This is too good to be true. My blogging topic fell right into my lap through a simple texting conversation.

Friend: Oh, and I forgot to tell you that he also included a gallon of windshield cleaner to fill up my car.

The End

I'm seriously still laughing about that conversation. I hope it made your day as much as it did mine.

Anyway, we have had an amazing week. Superstar Karaoke, Girls Night Out event, body painting and preparations for all of our Halloween events... super busy, but amazing. I hope you have all had a wonderful week as well. TGIF! Enjoy your weekend my little beauties.

I will see you all tomorrow! (That means I will be blogging tomorrow.)

Oh and could you all start harassing Lauren so that she will start blogging again? (I would post her phone number, but I'm certain she would kill me. just email her instead at LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com This is a great way to harass her because the emails go strait to her cell phone :D) You should ask her to novel about her Brazilian bikini wax experience. ;) ahahaha

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

The View

2009-09-08T20:38:00.000-07:00

Yes. The View. We will be featured in it. I am not talking about the ridiculous talk show flooded with old nagging women, I am speaking of the Las Vegas newspaper. Tomorrow Lauren and I will spend all morning with an adorable little journalist telling her more details about our average lives than she probably wants to know. I have no idea exactly what the article will be about, however, it should be amazing and I will post a link to the article once it is published.

Moving on, Thursday is our big Charity event for the Children's Heart Association and I can not wait! Its going to be a mini bridal show and all of the profits will be going to the charity. I will be there doing complimentary airbrush makeup for as many lovely ladies as I can squeeze in! Come see me, it is for an amazing cause. It will be this Thursday, September 10th, 2009 at The Plaza at Whitney Ranch and it begins at 7pm. I would like to give a few much deserved snaps to Wendhy Jeffers for putting together this amazing event, and for letting the LV Style Sirens be part of it.

So if you haven't heard yet, I am back in school super full time (I'm majoring in business Law... "Never underestimate a woman with a french manicure and a law degree." -Legally Blonde 2) so if my noveling is slacking a little, I apologize. I am doing my best to run a business, take care of my 1 year old son, go to school and complete all of my homework, prep for my roller derby debut, keep up on my MLIA's, an whatever else I find important for the moment.

I adore you all and appreciate the support and smart ass comments as well.

And as far as beauty advice, I don't have any today because I would much rather tell you that I bought a new MAC lip gloss called Young Thing that is Myth lipstick in a tube (It is limited so if you want one, you better go right now. By right now, I mean RIGHT NOW!) MAC Cream Cup cremesheen lipstick (Which is the most BEAUTIFUL lip color in the world with Oyster Girl lip gloss and Whirl lip liner...Thank you Mrs. Gardiner for that award winning combination) AND I am going out on a limb here and trying the new Studio Sculpt foundation by MAC. I need to find a new remedy for my disgusting skin since they discontinued Studio Mist, the most beautiful foundation ever invented. I tried to boy cot MAC , but who am I kidding? I would have to abandon my entire $10,000 makeup kit and start from scratch. That would never happen. I will keep you updated on how I like this new foundation, so until you hear back from me telling you that I am obsessed with it, don't go out and buy it. Got it?

Anyway, I am off to go skate around my block a few times in preparation for my derby tryouts in October. Oh and don't worry, I always wear my helmet. It actually looks pretty cute on me.

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

15 minutes of fame

2009-09-04T23:21:00.000-07:00

Yes. You heard me correctly. We had our 15 minutes of fame yesterday.

OK OK OK. It was not really 15 minutes, more like 15 seconds of fame. We were on the 6am Channel 3 news promoting Superstar Karaoke at Aliante Station. It was so fun. We showed Las Vegas how the Las Vegas Style Sirens roll when it comes to karaoke. We went through the whole process... the makeup, hair, and costumes... and the adorable little anchor women, Colette was such a sport through it all. :)

I can not believe what slackers we have been on the whole noveling scene. It is seriously pathetic, I know. But we are hard working women... what can I say?

We have some amazing projects coming through. ESPECIALLY because Halloween is coming up really quickly! We have some great ideas in store and we can't wait to put them to work. We will be sure to post pictures soon!

I have received several requests to explain how to apply false lashes correctly. So here we go...

1) Pick an amazing brand of lashes. (I preferrer lashes that are human hair with a thin band on them.) Lashes that you buy at Walgreens and places like that are so hard to work with! The better lashes you buy, the easier they will be to apply. You might have to fork out a few extra bucks, but suck it up and do it. Don't be a cheap-o. If you buy a good pair of lashes, you can wear them several times (If you take proper care of them)

2) Measure them. Everyone has different eye shapes, so obviously if you buy a pair of lashes, they probably are not going to fit you properly right after the box. Place the lash on top of you lash starting where your lashes begin and pinch them onto your lashes until your own lashes end. Then gently pinch the end and take it off of your lashes, trimming the excess lash. (Always cut from the outer corner of the lash.)

3) Apply 1-2 coats of a good black mascara to your natural lashes (I am obsessed with Lash Stiletto by Maybeline.) Do not put mascara on the false lashes.

4) Using a latex based glue (I like DUO in black. You can find this at Walgreens) place a thin layer of glue on the clear lash band and let it dry for about 10 seconds.

5) Get close to that mirror ladies (or gentlemen if you prefer) tilt your head up so that you can get a good view of the top of your lashes. Gently pinch the false lashes onto the top of your own lashes (They should be glued to the root of your own lashes, not on the skin of your upper eye)

6) Give them about 5 minutes to dry. Gently pull apart any lashes that may have been glued together in the process. Top it off with a little black liner to hid the seam of the lashes and you are ready to go! (I love MACs fluidline in BlackTrack)

7) Although the lashes can be reused, do not get them wet or sleep in them. Gently tug them off at the end of the day, and store them in a safe place. When you want to reuse them, simply tug off the dried latex based glue, and do steps 3-6 again. The more times you wear a pair of lashes, the easier it will be to reapply them because they will learn to form the shape of your eye. :) I wear the same pair of lashes about 10 times each.

It is actually super easy, but it will take some practice. Don't be lazy and give up. Lashes make all the difference so now that I have given you instructions, I seriously don't want to heard any lame-ass excuses.

I'm back in school super full time, but I will try my hardest to blog at least every other day. (But if I don't get around to it, please don't flood my email with hate mail or I will hate you.)

And if you have any beauty questions that you would like me to blog about, please email them to me! I love hearing from you all!

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

PS I'm going to try to join the Roller Derby this year. Start praying for me now because I am certainly going to need all the help I can get.

PSS OH!!! Please go visit my new favorite website www.Mylifeisaverage.com This way, if I ever say "MLIA" you will understand what I am referring to. Plus, the website is pure comedy.

Busy Little Bees...

2009-08-27T00:43:00.000-07:00

Sorry everyone. There is no excuse for our lack of noveling, however, we have been busy working on some amazing top secret projects! (No worries, you will hear about them as soon as all of the kinks are worked out and they are all official!)

Art and beauty are about to take over Vegas, Sirens style!!!

Love you all, and more makeup tips and tricks to come!

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens

New Stuff

2009-08-20T09:42:00.000-07:00

You're probably wondering where I have been and the truth is, I have been busy. My deepest apologies. I will never let this happen again.

Makeup mooch. I'm sure you are wondering what that is, right? A makeup mooch is a girl or woman who goes to makeup counters before she is going out that night pretending that she is interested in buying new makeup, has the makeup artists do her makeup for FREE, then does not buy any product. I can not even begin to tell you how annoying this is. I used to work for a cosmetic line and nothing would irritate me more than women who did this. Of course I loved doing makeup, but seriously, we still had sales goals to make and if you are tying someone up then they can not help customers who really do want to buy things. This is cheap and tacky so don't do it. Not to mention it puts little freelance artists like myself who have worked hard to build a name for themselves, out of work. If you need your makeup done when you are going out 1) Either buy makeup from the cute little girls at the makeup counter (and I don't mean just a freaking lip gloss. I mean at LEAST $50.00 in product) or 2) Hire a professional freelance artist to do it for you.

I just had to get that off of my chest even though I no longer work at a cosmetic counter. They were talking about it on 94.1 this morning and all the dumb asses that were calling in saying they did this, made my blood boil. I hate makeup mooches.

Moving on...

So many great things are in the works for the Las Vegas Style Sirens right now. I can not wait to see what the future holds!

Lets start out with Superstar Karaoke at Aliante Station. This amazing karaoke event is every Thursday night at Aliante Station in the Access showroom from 6:30 to 11. You get to chose costumes from their gigantic costume collection (I dressed up as Flavor Flav last week... NOTE: Shauna, that picture better NEVER surface...) have your hair and makeup done by the LV Style Sirens, and you can take home a DVD of it (You don't have to if this is an event that you do not want to remember. It is just an option.) If that isn't fun, I seriously don't know what is. There's plenty of alcohol there if you need a little liquid courage. Even if you don't want to sing, come watch everyone else act like idiots. That's always fun too.

Second, the LV Style Sirens will be doing the makeup for "Coffee With Ricky" which is a web show hosted by Ricky Gulati. If you don't know who Ricky Gulati is, he is the owner of Memory Lane Video LLC here in Las Vegas. When it comes to videography, he is the creme de la creme. His videos are absolutely amazing. His style is so unique and no one can even come close to it. (Check him out at www.MLVNV.com) Anyway, Coffee With Ricky is a web show where he interviews very prominent wedding professionals in Las Vegas to spread the word about the do's and don'ts of weddings. They offer advice about their profession, and give in site to weddings in Vegas. Needless to say, if they are featured on Ricky's show, they are legitimate. This will help you sort through all the fake and scummy professionals out here.

We will also be at Santa Fe Stations Bridal Show this Sunday, August 23rd 2009, from 1 to 4 at Santa Fe Station. There will be several wedding vendors here so you can come check out the property and meet different wedding professionals. They will have music, food, and most importantly, drinks. It should be easy going and fun, so come check it out!

On 9/9/09 the ETA lounge at Aliante will be hosting a kick ass party and the LV Style Sirens will be doing the hair and makeup for the dancers. We have all got together and we have some AMAZING designs in the works and I can not wait to put our visions on these beautiful ladies. It will be very nontraditional hair and makeup... think creepy zombie dolls!!! I live for things like this. I will keep you posted about this event since I don't have many details at this time.

And... Thursday September 17th, 2009, we will be participating in a charity event for the Children of Nevada's Heart Association. It will be a small event for brides to come out and meet with some wedding professionals in Las Vegas and all of the proceeds from the even will go to the charity. I don't know all of the details quite yet, but as soon as I do, I will let you all know!

So between all these amazing projects, weddings, photo shoots, and trials, we are busy little girls! I can not wait to see what else the future holds for us! Now that we are working with some amazing venues, and Memory Lane Video, I guess all that is left is working with AltF photography on a regular basis. (If you don't know who AltF is, please check them out. Incredible. www.AltF.com) John Michael or Dalisa, if you ever happen to read this, we're not going to leave you alone until you work with us on a regular basis. And please don't press charges, we really aren't stalkers,, we just love your photography.

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

OUR Etiquette

2009-08-11T21:32:00.000-07:00

Lauren has done a wonderful job noveling about wedding etiquette. (She LIVES for these topics) And now I would love to talk a little bit about the things that we find appropriate.

1) Toothpicks. First of all, this is such a vulgar name. It explains exactly what you are doing and frankly, it is disgusting. You should pick your teeth in a powder room or in the privacy of your own home. Not one person in this whole world (including your significant other) needs to see you picking your teeth. (This includes flossing) It is DISGUSTING and only you should see this. If you do have something in your teeth, it is very important to get rid of it, however, it needs to be done in private, not in the middle of a dinner party or in the bathroom while your significant other brushes their teeth. (This may be the thing that is causing them to gag.) Enough said.

2) Ladies please. Please please please DO NOT chow down on a cheeseburger while driving in your car. (This is one of the 11 commandments. Yes there are 11 commandments, not 10.) I can't think of anything more repulsive than a beautiful woman whom is dressed perfectly chowing down a cheeseburger at a red light. If you are starving, please eat the almonds you keep in your purse as an emergency snack (or if you must have a cheeseburger, please wait until you get home to pig out) This is so unattractive. If you choose to chow down a cheeseburger in your car, God will curse you. He will MAKE you slop mayo and mustard all over your nice-ass suit. I promise. (Please remember that you are breaking one of his 11 commandments.)

3) Do not eat chips in public. They are disgusting. When you eat chips they crumble all over you, and make you look like a fat, greasy pig. So do not do it unless you are in the comfort of your own home. I wish they would make chips bite sized so you would not be forced to shove the entire fist sized chip into your mouth. It is gross, and I sincerely hope that you do not do it unless you are sitting on your couch watching reality TV.

4) Perfume is an art. DO NOT douse yourself in perfume. Applying perfume is a ritual. Please spray it only on the appropriate places of your body (Neck and wrists). Nothing is worse than walking into a room and having people have a flashback of the AVM awards. Sick. Perfume is not a cover up of the sins you committed last night. It is not a "tune up." It is a beautiful representation of everything a woman stands for.

5) Alcohol. Please ladies, contain yourself. Alcohol is a beautiful thing. Do not ruin it by doing shots by the dozen and making a total ass of yourself. Have a little class and sip feminine drinks SLOWLY. No one wants to monitor you in the restroom or clean up your puke in the back of their car. (If you see Lauren and I doing beer bongs in the back of a shady club with Kim and Rory, please do not judge us. We are not perfect.) Thanks.

6) OK. People. Star. We all read these shitty magazines. We are all fascinated by the celebrity gossip and we all certainly want to judge who wore it better for ourselves, but please, never let any one catch you reading these magazines. If you MUST read these at the gym, please glue it inside of a Vouge magazine so people think you have a stitch of class. These magazines are a joke and NO ONE needs to know you read them. It is just degrading and embarrassing.

That is all I have for tonight. I'm off to sleep.

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

Etiquette Anyone?

2009-08-10T20:46:00.000-07:00

Good evening blogosphere. You are officially renamed "novelosphere". Emphasis on the "el". NovEL. NovELing. NovELosphere. Are you getting this? As I sit here finishing a delicious meal that I prepared (one of the last before we go kind of vegan) and drinking my "salty dog" I am considering one of my favorite topics...etiquette. Before I launch into my diatribe about etiquette let me educate those of you who are not proficient in cocktails. A salty dog is a drink made traditionally with grapefruit juice and gin. However I am a vodka girl (Belvedere please!) so I substitute gin for my spirit of choice. Some people add salt and some add powdered sugar to their drink, but I am a purist and prefer to have nothing. All of this is poured over ice in a highball glass and sipped. Do NOT chug because that is disgusting and rude. If you don't know what a highball is I can no longer help you and you should stop reading this entry immediately. On to etiquette.

This evening I would like to discuss wedding etiquette. We will talk about two specific topics. Those of you who know me know that I can go on for days about this kind of thing and have often sought my advice (well done). However it is late and I have drinks to drink so we will stick to two topics. You should all know that I take most of my etiquette training from a lovely woman named Emily Post. She is a published author so you may all go and educate yourselves should this strike a cord with you.

Topic 1 Showers and Parties

It has come to my attention that there are many brides to be who are confused about showers and parties for their big day. Let me be of assistance to you. A bridal shower is appropriate and even expected. However you should not have more than one shower where the same guests are invited. That puts a great burden on the guests because they feel obligated to buy you lots of presents. This is rude. The people who should throw you a shower should be close friends, friends of the family etc. Your immediate family should not throw a shower unless it is necessary because this can seem a little self-serving. Your total number of showers should be no more than 2. Don't be selfish. For further information I will refer you to my mentor Emily Post.

Topic 2 Gift Giving

When you send your invitation in the mail it carries an unspoken gift-in-return obligation. This means that if I receive an invite to your nuptials it would be bad form for me not to send a gift and if I don't want to sully my pristine reputation you will certainly receive a gift from me. No one likes to be the topic of gossip (unless you want to talk about how skinny I have recently become or what amazing jewelry I have!) When you are registering for your gifts consider your needs as a newly married couple. I am quite certain you do not NEED a flat screen TV or a flippin video game system. You might instead choose a lovely set of china or crystal to host my next birthday party with. Just a thought. Also when you register select gifts in a variety of different price ranges. Although some of us live in a world of champagne wishes and caviar dreams (Ally and I) others do not. Don't be obnoxious. And please do not assume that your guests are going to purchase off your registry. They may buy your gift where they choose. It is a gift and a privelege not a right. If you are giving a gift please send it addressed to the bride at her last known residence. Don't bring gifts to the wedding unless you want to carry it right back out with you. You may begin sending gifts as soon as you receive an invitation. Oh and brides?...I hope you have a system of keeping track of your gifts because sending out thank you cards is priority A1 when you return from your honeymoon!

In my next novEL session we will be discussing bridesmaids and other attendants. This is definitely one that you need to be on the look out for because this is a hot button issue for me and I'm sure to be on my soap box. An even taller one than what I'm on normally.

Post Scipt- I am very glad that Ally isn't going to become a crazy PETA lady because you better believe I sport fur in the winter and I would be pissed if she ruined it. We would have to disband the Style Sirens. So sad.

Make sure you come hang out with us on Thursdays 7pm at Aliante station! And don't forget to tune in to the third season of Mad Men Sunday at 10pm.

Lauren Gardiner

COO

The Las Vegas Style Sirens

I'M BACK!!!

2009-08-10T16:40:00.000-07:00

OMG! Sorry to everyone. I have been an awful "blogger." I was out of town for my brothers wedding this weekend and it was impossible for me to get to a computer during my hectic schedule to "blog." I am sending my dearest and most sincere apologies.

Let me start off by saying my makeup skills and everything I have been preaching were put to test this weekend. I was in charge of doing five of the six people in the wedding parties makeup. (This includes the bride, the Maid of Honor, and three of the four Bridesmaids.) I had my makeup kit, my airbrush machine, false lashes....everything EXCEPT my entire brush collection. AGGGGG!!! Nightmare...right??? I started to panic when I realized this as I was laying in bed, 700 miles away from my brushes about four hours before I had to do makeup for the wedding. Luckily I had 5 (Yes only FIVE) brushes that I had packed for my personal use. (Numbers 150, 116, 224, 217, and 266.) And I did the entire wedding parties makeup with just these 5 brushes. (It is just hilarious to me that I had just "blogged" about this about a week before.) It turned out to be a total success. I finished every ones makeup and they all looked beautiful. (It was a major advantage that they were all gorgeous to begin with.) So there ya go. If I can do it, so can you! Have some faith! Boo ya!

Next matter of business....

Last Thursday, The LV Style Sirens had the opportunity to be part of one of the most amazing events here in Las Vegas. Superstar Karaoke at Aliante Station Hotel and Casino. Let me just tell you what a GENIUS idea this is. (I seriously can't believe I didn't think of it first!) First of all, it takes place in the Access Showroom there which is absolutely BEAUTIFUL!!! There is a gigantic stage, a dance floor so that you can get your groove on to other peoples sometimes horrific singing, and plenty of places to sit your little bum if you don't feel like participating (There are also plenty of bars around if you need a little liquid courage to get your butt up on stage.) and they have thousands (and I mean THOUSANDS) of songs to choose from. So what makes this so great? Aliante Station actually hires a professional hair and makeup team (The Las Vegas Style Sirens) AND has a costume and prop room so that you can get into full character before you perform! Are you joking me????? This has to be the most best activity I have ever heard of! Last Thursday was the opening night and it was a blast. Everyone had so much fun and they totally got into their characters which made it 1,000 times more fun and entertaining. We were watching on a TV back in the makeup room and Lauren and I literally had tears in our eyes because we were laughing so hard. It is every Thursday night and it starts at 7pm. Even if you do not want to get up and sing, I highly recommend you come strictly for the entertainment value. (It's always much more fun to watch other people make complete fools of themselves, and surprisingly, some people were actually REALLY good!) You won't even believe the things people do. It was hilarious. Come this week and bring some friends. You always feel like less of an idiot when you have a little entourage cheering you on.

So this weekend I finally read the book "Skinny Bitch" that I picked up months ago but have never found time to read. (Ok Ok Ok. So I lost it somewhere and forgot I even bought it until I found it yesterday...) I read the entire book in one sitting and it has completely changed my life. It is a little liberal, and has a few choice words in there but overall, the information these two ladies provide, is priceless. It is written by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin (One was a model scout for Ford models, and the other actually was a model for many years) and these ladies are amazing and unbelievably hilarious. When I first saw it at Target on the bookshelf, obviously the first thing that attracted me was the title. Who wouldn't want to read a book called Skinny Bitch? (Especially since I myself, am trying to be a skinny bitch.) However, that isn't really what this book is about. It is about, well, lots of things. It is about animal cruelty, being a vegan, what being a vegan really means, what types of foods are acceptable for vegans etc. I can not even begin to explain all of the bullshit behind the meat that we eat everyday. I was appalled when I read this book. The things that go on are unthinkable! What I love about this book, is whenever these ladies would write about something, they would note the source they got it from. They also explained that people aren't vegans to be trendy (well not all of them at least) and that you can still enjoy food being a vegan. They give a list of acceptable foods, and even a months worth of vegan recipes that sound sooo yummy! I have never even considered not eating meat because I just love it so much, but once I read this book, I have decided I am going to give it a try. (No, I am not doing this to be skinny, although I'm sure not eating dead rotting beef carcass everyday will help) I am going to try it as a new lifestyle. I have tried every other "diet" you can thing of, why not this? I'm sure it will take a while to adjust, but it is totally worth a shot. Even if you never want to become a vegan, please read this book. It has so many great ideas and it is a huge eyeopener into what our meat and dairy industry is REALLY like. It's an easy book to read so get off your lazy butt and read it. You may borrow my copy when Lauren is finished. Starting next Monday, we're going kinda vegan. We will keep you up to date on how it is going through our "blog" and if you decide to give it a whirl, keep us posted on how you are feeling about the whole experience.

PS This does not mean that I will become a crazy PETA member who throws ink on people who wear real fur. I do not agree with everything these ladies say and I certainly do not agree with everything that PETA does, but I can respect and agree with many of the points that they bring up in this book. I mean, not everyone likes what I have to say, but that is just to bad because I say whatever I want. We all have the freedom of speech, don't we?

As much as I have missed "blogging" it is time for me to go before Lauren yells at me for writing an entire novel. HEY! That could be our new word for "blogging"...noveling maybe??? What do you think?

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

Wedding trend...or not to trend...that is the question.

2009-08-05T16:00:00.000-07:00

Since the summer (especially August) is the most popular time for people to get married, (you all thought it was June!) I have decided to "blog" a little bit about some wedding trends.

Lauren and I have worked with hundreds of brides on their wedding day, and let me tell you, we have seen it all! I have seen some amazing crazy things, and I have seen some breathtaking traditional weddings as well. The one thing I have learned is, there really are no wedding trends. In fact, the trend is, there are no trends! This is YOUR wedding. You may have been planning this for 25 years, or you may have just started thinking about it the day you got engaged. Either way, it does not matter what colors or theme you choose, as long as it represents you and your future partner in crime.

My brother is marring a wonderful girl named Teeny this Saturday. (No Teeny is not her real name, it's actually Justina Shantel, however considering she is 4'10", we call her teeny.) Their wedding is not exactly what you would call traditional. Their colors are yellow and navy blue. All of her bridesmaids are wearing navy blue dresses with yellow vans. They are having popcorn and cotton candy machines at their reception. The boys are all wearing high top Nikes. Is this traditional? No. Is this the type of wedding everyone would want? No. Does it suit their personalities to a tea? Yes. And really, what could be more important on their special day?

Mrs. Lauren Gardiner had a beautiful winter wedding held at the Artisan hotel here in Las Vegas which is a beautiful boutique style hotel. She wore an amazing piercing white gown and had crimson red roses everywhere. She didn't have a traditional cake, instead she had a beautiful tiered cupcake assortment and of course, an open bar. Traditional? More or less, yes. Was it her style? Yep.

That is just the beginning. I have seen jungle themed, princess themed, Elvis themed, Luau themed, and my personal favorite, comic book themed. You name it, I've seen it. And even though some of these choices would not be my first choice, they always seem to fit the bride and groom perfectly. If you embrace the theme correctly, your guests will have a ball no matter what.

Your hair and makeup are just as important as any other aspect of your special day. They should flow with the theme and color trend of your wedding. I think that brides overlook hair and makeup far to often. They spend thousands of dollars on food, beverage, decorations, flowers, music, and the venue, when in reality, do you think they will look back in 20 years and say "Hey! We had some AMAZING shrimp cocktail at our wedding!" I personally don't think so. However, in 20 years, when you look back at your wedding album you WILL say "Dang. I looked smokin' hott that day." So why would you spend all this money to skimp on something so important? I just don't get it.

If you do smarten up and decide you are going to have your makeup and hair professionally done for your wedding (and professionally DOES NOT mean that your cousin's best friend's sister who kind of does her makeup well is going to do it) please be sure to book a trial. Many companies offer a discounted price for your trial, or sometimes, they will do your trial for free if you end up booking with their company. This is a great way to meet one on one with your stylists to figure out what look is going to work best for you. It also ensures that you get along with these people who will be in your face all day on the most important day of your life and you will know exactly what you will look like so that you have one less thing to worry about on this stressful day. I understand if you are coming to Las Vegas for a destination wedding, it is virtually impossible to do a hair and makeup trial, but if you can squeeze one in, I recommend you do! It will make everything go that much smoother.

Good luck on your wedding planning ladies! You can't go wrong if you stay true to yourself!

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com

Lauren's long lost "Blog"

2009-08-05T08:29:00.000-07:00

Blog sweet blog how I've missed you! It's been to long.

As you all know I celebrated 3 years of wedded bliss with my husband this past weekend and it was amazing. If you're a local in Vegas you must take a little drive up to the Spring Mountains and Lee Canyon. It is 30 degrees cooler up there and oh soooo beautiful. Also please check out my new favorite watering hole the Yard House. They have over 200 beers on tap! Try a delicious pub ale called Old Speckled Hen ( I know...stupid name, but so dang good). It's a dream!!

Alright down to business. I'd like to talk about some of my favorite things.

1. Ally has noted in previous posts that I am the skin care queen so lets start with my most favorite item of all time...Arbonne's NutriminC Enzyme Peel. Why have they not made this in bathtub size so that I can just bathe in it? It boggles the mind. This is a delicious combination of pineapple and papaya enzymes that literally melts off the dead skin while you sleep! You will wake up with practically a brand new face. It is that amazing! So now that we've talked about this product twice you should go buy it immediately.

2. L'Occitane's Shea Butter collection. Anything from this collection is to die for. If you don't know anything about this company you need to google them right now. They are fantastic. They have very specific practices for harvesting their shea butter and on top of that they put huge amounts of it in the products which is awesome for your skin. I carry a hand cream from them in every bag that I own.

3. Burt's Bees Replenishing Lip Balm with pomegranate oil. This is the one with the red cap. I love this stuff! First of all it doesn't have spf in it. I know that this goes against conventional wisdom, but I can not stand spf on my lips. It tastes disgusting, it smells and it dries my lips out which defeats the whole purpose. Yeah Burt's Bees!

4. OPI's Rapid Dry Spray and Avoplex nail and cuticle oil. Rapid Dry spray is necessary for anytime you paint your nails. This will speed up dry time plus it smells delicious..like Dr. Pepper. Avoplex oil is equally amazing but this is for your cuticles. ( It also smells delicious. Like what I don't know.) It has done wonders for my cuticles. Put this on after soaking your fingers in warm water and then use your cuticle clipper to clean up that area of the nail. Use on a daily basis to keep your cuticles healthy and moisturized!

5. Paul Mitchell's Super Skinny Serum. Put this product in your hair when it's wet. It helps speed up dry time and gives your hair shine. However your hair can never be to shiny so please don't skimp on the gloss drops or gloss spray after your hair is styled. We all love shimmery, shiny hair!

Now that I've graced you with some of my secret beauty weapons I will leave you to marinate on how you can incorporate some of these things into your routine. One last note I would like to include is this.....If you are going to watch reality television (and waste your time I might add) please make sure you program your Tivo to record the Rachel Zoe Project which begins August 24th. This is the one reality show that I can fully support. Go Team Zoe!!

Have a beautiful day!

Lauren Gardiner

COO

The Las Vegas Style Sirens

lvstylesirens@yahoo.com

Reality TV Rundown.

2009-08-04T22:14:00.000-07:00

So tonight I was watching the second episode (yes, I have already seen the first) of a new show entitled "More To Love." It is a reality show where plus size women compete for the love of a plus size guy. So basically, it is a plus size bachelorette.

(If any of you know me, I am a sucker for reality TV. Especially bad, trashy and ridiculous reality TV.)

Anyway, I am watching More To Love and even I,the queen bee of reality TV, cannot stand to sit through another moment of this. (This coming from someone who watched the ENTIRE seasons of Rock of Love, Daisy of Love, The Bachelorette, and many more that I am far to embarrassed to speak of.) This show is the most boring reality show I have ever seen! All it is, is plus size women crying about how bad it was growing up fat (while their weight is plastered across the screen. No joke. So humiliating!) and confessing their love to this super boring bachelor.who is MONOTONE! Ugh I can't stand that.) They literally just met this guy like 2 days ago. As I sit there grinding my teeth, they are all going on and on about how he is everything they hoped and dreamed for and how they want to be his wife. Barf. I made it through 8 minutes of episode two. That was plenty. I mean, at least in The Bachelorette, they wait a few episodes to transform into a creepy stalker. Ugh. Ugh. UGH. I do not recommend watching this show. Seriously.

On our way to the mall today, Lauren and I were having a conversation about how we wish we were skinny. (Lauren made a point in telling me that sometimes, she prays to be skinny following up with "God works all kinds of miracles. Why can't he make me skinny overnight?" This is why I love her. I mean, it is a valid point...right?) I guess we can't blame anyone but ourselves that we're not skinny. We love to eat and we cannot stick to a gym regiment for more than a month at a time. I like to blame my weight gain on my son by saying "Oh, I just had a baby!" Truth is, he's 10 months old now, and I had the nickname "Muffin" LONG before he was even a thought in my mind. I'm running out of excuses. (To my defense, it is much harder to lose weight after you have a baby. I'm hoping when school starts again, I'll spend more time studying and less time eating Cheetos while watching reality TV.) Instead of complaining about it, we have just decided to embrace the fact that we are "big boned" (sounds much better than plus size, don't you think?) until we get the motivation to become super skinny bitches. I love being a size eight. Ok ten. Ok Ok Ok twelve. Are you happy?

*Note to self: Go to gym tomorrow.

Back to my reality show rundown. If you secretly love trashy reality TV as much as I do, then you have come to the right place. If you haven't been watching or don't have Tivo (the greatest invention of all time) I'm going to give you a little recap of what as been going down on some of my favorite shows. (I needed a break from makeup "blogging.")

Daisy Of Love

This was a sweet little show about Miss Daisy De La Hoya (yes, this is the niece of Oscar De La Hoya) trying to find love after Brett Michaels left her in the dust on Rock of Love. What a disaster this turned out to be. I swear, with some reality shows, they find to most beastly, vulgar, temper driven boys (not men) that they can, and stick them into a house together just to see what happens. This is one of those shows and I love it! You just had to watch this show to realize how ridiculous it actually was, and in last weeks season finale, she chose London. A 30-something year old, homeless, jobless dude in a "band" (Oh my gosh! He's in a band! How cool! How sexy! *Ally rolls her eyes*) who had actually left the show then came back after he got home to New York and realized he had no home. And no job. And his band was going absolutely no where. I think he realized it was a much better life back in Daisy's multi-million dollar mansion where he had somewhere to sleep and unlimited free food and booze. I'm sure a little TV time didn't hurt his "band" either. My favorite clip of London was the first night that he was in Daisy's house and he got ridiculously wasted, threw up EVERYWHERE and passed out in an empty closet. Man Daisy, you can sure pick them! I actually feel sorry for her that she has such poor taste in men. She seems to actually have some-what of a good heart. Maybe next time (and trust me, there will be a next time) it will be Daisy of Love except I will go on the show instead of Daisy and I will weed through all the losers on there to help her find true love. If you're reading this Daisy, call me.

Paris Hiltons My new BFF

Miss Paris Hilton, when you eliminated Steven out of the final 3 last week, I swore I would not watch the season finale. Instead I planned on hitch hiking up to Utah, knocking on every door until I found Steven's house, and beg him to be MY new BFF. However, curiosity killed the cat and I just had to watch it tonight. Lucky for Paris, unlucky for me, instead of picking either Stephanie or Tenicia (who were the final two) she changed her mind last minute and picked Steven. I have renewed faith in you Paris. Thank you.

NYC Prep

Sebastian: You're an idiot.

PC: You're and idiot.

Jessie: You're a snotty idiot.

Camille: You're an idiot.

Kelli: You're an idiot.

Taylor: You're the only one I like.

That is all I can say about this show. I'm ashamed to say I still support it by watching it every Tuesday night.

Real Chance of Love

One episode down, 16 hot-mess, trashy girls to go. I can already tell these boys are going to find their soul mates in this bunch of strippers and drunks. Especially since the first episode (which aired last night) 2 girls got eliminated before the elimination ceremony due to physical violence (one of them was from Vegas! Yay! Making us all SO proud. Way to represent!) I'll keep you posted on this one. I have a feeling it is going to be a lonnng journey for these "Stallionaires." (Yes. That is seriously what they call themselves.)

Anyway, thats just a few of my secret addictions. I'll keep you as updated as I can.

Everyday I can't help but think "If all of these morons get their own reality TV shows, why can't I get one too?" At least mine would have a stitch of class. If you're reading this VH1, MTV, BET... CALL ME!

I'm off to watch the rest of More To Love. Just kidding!

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens

PS Lauren is probably going to be furious that I wasted my time "blogging" about this, so I'm going to throw her a bone and add in a little makeup tip. :) ALWAYS use a cream base underneath your eyeshadow. This will help last longer, blend better, and intensify the color. I love MACs Paint Pots (I usually use Indianwood, Painterly, or Soft Ochre depending on the skin tone) OR Macs Cream Color Base in Pearl or Nude. (I use them both with any skin color.) WARNING: If you use to much Cream Color Base, you will get creasing on your eyelid which is never a good thing so please, use it sparingly!

Brush Hour III

2009-08-01T22:28:00.001-07:00

99% of the time when we do a makeup job I hear "I wish you could come do my makeup everyday!" Although I am flattered, I cannot help but wish the I had someone come and do my makeup everyday as well. I understand it is a total pain in the butt being a woman, (Men have it so easy it's disgusting.) but there are some ways to save time and improve your chances of recreating any look that a makeup artist gives you.

When women come to me and say "I have tried to do my makeup how you did it, but I just can't." I always feel a little frustrated. Being an ex-theater major, I wrote a script to inform you why:

Woman: "I have tried to do my makeup how you did it but I just cant!"

Ally: "Oh really? I am so sorry to hear that! How many times did you try the new techniques I showed you out?"

Woman: "Once."

Ally: "Oh. Well you didn't give it much of a chance missy! Did you use the same products I did?"

Woman: "No."

Ally: "Oh. Okay. Well did use the brushes I recommended?"

Women: "No. I didn't have any of them."

Ally: "Oh. Umm well then how did you apply your makeup?"

Woman: "With my fingers."

Ally: "NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!"

*Ally faints*

AND SCENE.

Thank you. *Ally takes a bow* So now that I have preformed my little skit, let me tell you about the many problems I have with it.

1) Trying out what I teach you in a lesson/consultation is not something you can just practice once. Do you think that I woke up one day, said "Oh. I think I am going to be a makeup artist today" and started doing perfect makeup the next day? Heck no! I have done some terrible makeups, but over time I have learned from my mistakes. Practice makes perfect right? And if you do mess up, lets look at the bright side. It's JUST MAKEUP. If you mess up, all you have to do is swipe a little makeup remover over it and start over. I don't want to ever hear you complain about "not knowing how to do something" until you have practiced AT LEAST everyday for a month. I promise you will be doing it perfectly. If you still can not do it by the end of the month, then we can work together to find a new game plan for you.

2) If you don't use the same products as I do, it is not going to look the same. It is as simple as that ladies. I use certain products for a reason. There is a world of difference between an eyeshadow that you buy at Wal*Mart and a MAC eyeshadow. Sure, MAC eye shadows are a little bit pricey (Around $15.00 a piece) however they will last you ten times longer because the color payoff is so amazing, all you need is one little swipe. I am NOT saying to abandon all of your makeup and run out and spend your whole 401K on brand new products for your brand new makeup routine, I am simply saying know how to use what you have, and once you cycle through your old makeup, seriously think of investing in higher end products. The good thing about our consultations/lessons is we take what you already have, show you how to use it properly, and then we explain how to fill in the missing pieces by recommending things that would work well for you.

3) BRUSHES. BRUSHES. BRUSHES. They are so important (and expensive, I know) I really can not stress it enough. Since brushes are so pricey, I try to replace or add one brush to my collection every other time I go makeup shopping. This way, I am not stressing myself out too much by purchasing $500.00 in brushes, and I can slowly filter out older brushes. (I have had my set for over 7 years and I am just now starting to replace some of them) When you walk into a makeup store, it is a little overwhelming to look at all of the brushes and try to decide what will work best for you, so I am going to tell you all the brushes you could possibly need to create a perfect makeup (anything else you choose to purchase is totally up to you and how comfortable you are using them)

I use only MAC brushes. I have tried several other brands, but many of them are more expensive than MAC. I feel with MAC, I get a great brush for a very fair price.

*Brush #217. This is the ONLY brush you need to do an eye makeup. It is soft enough to blend, but firm enough to place color.

*Brush #224. This can also be used on the eye if you are searching for a softer look. I also use this brush for concealer. This brush blends it in and gives you an airbrushed look without removing any facial primer or eye cream.

*Brush #209. This is the only brush for eyeliner if you ask me. It doesn't matter if you use liquid, gel, or shadow, this brush is it.

*Brush #266. This brush is your eyebrow brush. it fills in your brows flawlessly. You can also use this one for eyeliner if you want to save some money. I just personally prefer the #209 for eyeliner.

*Brush #188. This is your foundation brush. Whether you wear powder or liquid, this one does the trick every time.

*Brush #116. This is the perfect sized blush brush. You never over do the blush with this little guy.

And there you have it. 6 brushes. (5 brushes if you just get the #266 instead of the #209 and the #266) You can ALWAYS add more brushes to do different things once you get more skilled. I have hundreds of brushes and I use them all. But if you just have 5-6 amazing brushes that are great quality, you will be totally set. I can't stress that enough.

These brushes will last you forever if you take proper care of them. You can purchase brush cleanser for $11.00 at MAC. All you need to do is dab a little bit of this magic potion on a paper towel, swipe your brush back and forth a few times, and it releases all the color and dries instantly so that you can use the same brush with multiple colors. Then once a week, use a gentle shampoo (I like to use baby shampoo) with a bit of water to deep clean your brushes. Leave them out to dry overnight, and you are good to go! Just be sure not to get water into the ferrule of your brushes (where the metal ferrule meets the wood handle.) This will rot the wood over time and it will eventually ruin your brush.

I hope this helps a tiny bit. Love you all, but it is time for bed because I am one tired little "blogger." Eww.

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens

P.S. Follow us on Twitter, Myspace, AND Facebook. All of them our URLs are LVStyleSirens.

...A few of my favorite things...

2009-07-31T19:23:00.000-07:00

I have been getting a large amount of requests for us to "blog" (I still loathe that word) about how to create an amazing skin care routine, however, I have decided that I am going to leave that up to Lauren considering she is the alpha and omega of skincare. She's been out of town, but she should be back to "blogging" with in the next few days.

I often get asked about what my favorite products are so I'm going to go through and tell you about a few of my favorite things.

1) Arbonne's complete RE9 collection, They have an amazing eye cream (with a skin lightener in it so it actually helps reduce those nasty under eye circles that we all HATE!), daily lotion, cleanser, and (my personal favorite) a pineapple enzyme peel that you wear over night. I swear by this stuff. You wake up, and overnight you have shed all of that nasty skin and dead cells (like a snake!) and you have a fresh new face.

2) Origins Clear Improvement Active Charcoal Mask. This little piece of heaven works unbelievable wonders. Ok Ok Ok... so it looks like you slapped tar on your face, however once you see how squeaky clean this leaves your pores, you won't mind in the least.

3) MAC creme sheen lipsticks. AGHH! I love these. They have an amazing color payoff, they feel like silk on your lips, and they have a tiny gloss finish so all you need to do is swipe one on and you are good to go. I seriously own every single color. (I actually have duplicates of some of them!) Some of my favorites are Ravishing, (a beautiful peach color with Creme Sherry lip liner) Modesty, (a perfect day to day natural color for any skin tone. I love to use MACs Cream O Spice lip liner with it.) Brave Red (A true red) Speak Louder (A darker rose pink paired with Pink Treat lip liner) and Dare You (A dark crimson red) AGHHH! I love them all, but those are just a few. Please invest in one. You will be obsessed. I promise.

4) Arbonne's Revelage Concentrated Age Spot Minimizer. I could bathe in this daily. It feels incredible on your skin. I was very skeptical about Arbonne products considering I am not the biggest fan of Mary Kay and Avon which are sold through distributors like Arbonne is. However, once I tried this stuff, I was HOOKED! This silky lotion totally eliminated 75% of the freckles on my face. It is just amazing. I can not say enough good things about it.

5) Clinique's Full Potential lips Plump and Shine Lip gloss. Every time I use this, I get commented on how full my lips look. I have no idea what is in it, or what makes it work (it has ZERO sting or tingly feeling) but it works. And it comes in beautiful shades. I am a huge fan of the colors Extra Apricot and Glamour-Full.

6) MAC's Fluid line gel eyeliner. I would die without this stuff. It is a water resistant gel eyeliner and comes in a cute little pot. Many people are a little frightened by it because you have to use a brush to apply it, however, it is SOOO easy. Don't be scared! I like to use MAC's #209 (a small pointed brush) and Lauren likes to use MAC's #266 (a small angled brush.) Either one is fine, it is all about preference. I actually think this is much easier to use than a liquid liner because there is more room for error. It glides right on and sets within a matter of seconds. AND it is water resistant so it isn't running down your face half way through the day. (we all know how sexy that is.) I like Blacktrack (a jet black) but it comes in every shade you can imagine from dark brown to bright purple.

7) As far as eyeshadow goes, MAC can do no wrong in my eyes. I have tried everything from Smashbox, to Cover Girl, to Benefit, to Chanel, to Bobbi Brown. I have tried them all, and NO ONE does it like MAC. They have SOOOO many colors and they glide on effortlessly. Everyone has different color preferences, however a few of my favorite daily shadows (all MAC) are Brule, Expensive Pink, Tete-a-tint, Soba, Honesty, Vanilla (the shadow AND the pigment) Dovefeather, Era, and Blackberry. I could go on forever, but those are a few shadows I wear on a day to day basis. (Not at the same time, obviously :)

8) Maybelline Has done it again! Forget Great Lash, it is ALL about Lash Stiletto mascara. This mascara has the perfect brush, it doesn't clump, run, and it is jet black which I love. Plus the packaging alone is enough to make you want to buy it. Its red and black and it is shaped like an actual stiletto. Who actually thought putting on mascara could make you feel sexy?

9)Be Maui Brown!!!!!! I can not even describe how wonderful this all natural tanning oil and skin conditioner is. It has 1,000 uses. You can use it in your hair and on your skin. It is 100% natural with a natural SPF in it as well. It smells absolutely wonderful and it is great for women and men. All I can say it try it. You will be totally hooked. It is not sold in stores, in fact, it is distributed here in Las Vegas by a spa owner and friend of ours. If you're interested in trying it, email us at LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com or you can pick one up at one of the 2 Maui Salon and Spa locations here in town. (http://www.mauisalonandspas.com/)

Like I said before, these are just A FEW of my faves. I could "blog":for hours, however I'm going to let you experiment with these few products. I will be sure to keep you posted when I find more amazing things!

Also, if you are interested in Arbonne, I sell the complete line so just email us if you are interested at LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com (I can also get samples of certain things.)

I hope everyone had a wonderful week and I will see you all tomorrow! TGIF!

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens

Color Theory 101

2009-07-30T09:12:00.000-07:00

Good morning everyone! Sorry we did not get a chance to post yesterday. Our Las Vegas based mobile beauty team ventured over to Henderson for the day to attend a few workshops. We are patiently awaiting the arrival of our brand new full flash website. (*Ally screams with excitement*) It should be up and running any day now. As soon as it is, I will let you all know so you can go view the project that Lauren and I have placed our blood, sweat, and tears into for the last three months. We have hand picked every color, movement, word, and space on this website and it is going to be AMAZING thanks to Heather and Joey at Posh Web Design. If you ever need a website, Heather is your girl! (http://www.poshwebdesign.com/)

Today, I would like to discuss color theory. If you are sitting there saying "Ummm, Ally, I have NO CLUE what that means!" Its okay! That is why I am here. To help you improve your knowledge of makeup products and skills.

Color theory is "a set of principles used to create harmonious color combinations." (Yes, that was, once again, pulled strait out of the dictionary.) What this all comes down to is the color wheel. If you have taken any sort of basic art class, I am sure you are familiar with it. The color wheel breaks down primary colors, secondary colors, complementary colors, shades and tints of different colors. (Shade and tint are what happen to a basic color when you add either black or white to them.) This is how we get beautiful colors such as olive green, light pink and maroon.

Now that I have shed a little bit of light on what color theory is, GO PURCHASE A COLOR WHEEL! You do not need anything special, just a tiny paper one (they are available at all arts and craft stores for around $1.00) This is a wonderful tool to have in your makeup collection to use as a reference point. I guarantee that if you ask any professional makeup artist, they will tell you they a) either keep one in their kit at all times or b) they have been doing makeup for so long that they have it completely memorized.

I bet you are probably saying "Why on earth do I need to know shades, and tints, and blah blah blah? I'm not a professional makeup artist."

It is simple actually. We have all at one point (Yes, even me) been guilty of matching our electric blue eyeshadow to our electric blue T-shirt. This is when a color wheel would have come in handy. Instead of matching your eyeshadow to your shirt, you should try using complimentary colors. For example, if you are wearing an amazing blue blouse, you should try using complimentary colors for your makeup which would include shades and tints of orange. (I love MACs Expensive pink, Brown Down, and Motif eye shadows.) To find a complimentary color, you simply look across the color wheel. Whatever color is on the other side is the complimenting color (and any shade or tint of that color would work just as well) If you were wearing a beautiful olive green eyeshadow, you might want to use a burgundy lipstick because red and green are complimentary colors. There are so many amazing color combinations that you would probably never think of if it weren't for a color wheel. Complimentary colors are just the beginning. You also have things like tertiary colors (which are colors that are formed by mixing a primary color with a secondary color (Such as... blue-green and red-orange) and analogous colors which are three colors that are side by side on a color wheel (Such as... yellow-green, yellow, and yellow-orange) You can learn so much about color combinations and color theory by experimenting with a color wheel.

Painters use color wheels ALL THE TIME to help their paintings look aesthetically pleasing to the eye. Why would the color combinations of makeup on your face be any different? We all want to look harmonious, don't we?

I could go on for hours, however, I think I have said plenty for your first lesson on color theory. I hope this helps and if you guys have any questions, OR any topics you would like us to "blog" about for you, please email us at LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com. We love to hear feedback and what you guys would like us to discuss next!

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens

PS Happy 3 year wedding anniversary to our very own Mrs. Lauren Gardiner and her husband Ethan. Hopefully, he can put up with you for at least 3 more :) JK. Love you.

Shimmer down ladies.

2009-07-28T21:40:00.000-07:00

Today I would like to talk about something that can be extremely offensive to me. Shimmer. Come on ladies. I know you know what I am talking about. Shimmer eyeshadow. Shimmer blush. Shimmer foundation. Frosty lipstick. UGH!

I see this tragedy on a daily basis. Beautiful women who unfortunately overdose on shimmer. RIP.

When you are at a cosmetic store or counter, I have found that many times the employees there are commission based. In these rough economic times, that is a hard way to earn your paycheck. I firmly believe that they will tell you ANYTHING looks good on you just to get that sale. I have tested this theory several times.

I once walked into a store that carried nothing but cosmetics and applied the most hideous shade of purple lipstick that I could find. (Please note I also had zero makeup on besides the lipstick which made that stupid lipstick look much worse than it really was.) I then ventured out to find the nearest employee to ask their opinion of this particular shade knowing perfectly well how ridiculous I looked. (WAIT... keep reading. It gets better) Before I could even find an employee, a cute little blond employee hunted me down and told me that lipstick was an amazing color on me and I just HAD to get it for spring. Barf. I was in shock. Either she lied strait to my face (which I am hoping was the case) or she ACTUALLY thought this shade of lipstick looked good on me. Which brings me to my next point...

Uninformed employees.

It is one thing to lie to me to make a commission off of my sale, however it is a totally different story to be uninformed on trends, color theory, or the product line that you are representing. (Both are equally as disgusting.) Not to long ago, I walked up to a cosmetic counter to try and find a new foundation (I change my foundation more often than I change my underwear.) and was greeted by an adorable girl. She was friendly, and we had a wonderful little chat. I told her I needed a new foundation for summer and that I tend to get shiny due to the hell-like weather conditions here. She pulled out a cream foundation, slathered it on my cheek and said that was the one I should buy. I quickly told her I would think about it and scurried away. Had I not been a makeup artist, I probably would have bought it and called it a day, however, I know better than that. When I told her I get sweaty and shiny (Sexy...right?) in the summer, the LAST thing she should have tried to sell me was a cream foundation. All that is going to do is make me shine like the sun (not in a good way) and my foundation would be separation station 5 minutes after I walk out the door. Not to mention, it was about 3 shades to dark for my super fair complexion. What bums me out the most about this, is that she really thought this was the foundation for me. (*Ally starts to tear up*)

The point of these stories is, not every "beauty professional" you meet is really a professional. So please, do a little of your own research BEFORE you go cosmetic shopping so you will be properly informed. And by do a little research, I mean read our beauty "blog" on a daily basis or email us at LVStyleSirens@yahoo.com with any questions you might have.

As far as shimmer goes, I like to stick to these basic rules:

1) On a daily basis I think it is appropriate to stick to one (Yes, ONE) shimmery eyeshadow on your eye at a time. I like to put a light (almost flesh tone) shimmer underneath the brow bone, or a simple shimmery shade swept across the eyelid. A heavy hand never comes in handy when you are working with shimmer.

2) Unless you are a 15 year old girl with flawless skin, lets stay away from any type of shimmer in a foundation. Shimmer will make your pores look 5 times bigger than they actually are, and who really wants that?

3) If you MUST use a shimmery blush, keep it on the apple of the cheeks and use a matte to contour the rest. Or better yet, use a matte blush, and highlight your upper cheekbone with a soft shimmer highlight powder. BEAUTY!!!!!

4) Frosty lipstick...oh man. There are a few frosty colors that are just beautiful (MAC'S Bombshell and Wild 'Bout You to name a few) However, frosty lipsticks must be applied correctly. To apply them correctly, always use a corresponding lip liner and DO NOT over draw your lips. The frost brings unnecessary attention to the fact that you overdrew your lips. That is never good.

5) Please remember that shimmer means to "gleam faintly" (yes I actually looked up the definition in the dictionary.) It does not mean "big chunks of confetti glitter that I would find all over my floor after my son's first birthday party." Please keep this in mind. Chunky glitter is for 3 people. Stage performers. People stuck in 1987. And hookers. If you do not fall in one of those categories, please refrain from wearing it. This includes gunky gel glitter eyeliners, loose glitter of any sort (unless it is one of the reflects glitters from MAC which are beautiful and totally acceptable if used properly.) glitter mascara, and especially glitter lotion. It was cool when we were in 4th grade, however, I don't think your clients would be all that impressed if you showed up with glitter in your cleavage. Or maybe they would. Guess it depends on what kind of profession you are in, and what kind of people you want to attract. Regardless, you get my point.

If you stick to these simple rules about shimmer, I can guarantee you will look and feel so much younger! People will notice a difference. I know it can be scary to jump out of your comfort zone, but give it a whirl. Matte is never a scary thing, and it looks beautiful on everyone.

Although a tiny bit of shimmer can make you look youthful and refreshed, just remember too much shimmer can age you 50 years. Seriously.

xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens

Perfecting Blonde

2009-07-28T20:15:00.000-07:00

Being a blonde is not an easy task. It takes a TON of work to find the perfect shade and then maintaining it is pretty close to a full time job. This is no hobby and it is not for the feint of heart. Okay maybe it's not that serious, but I'm biased. My preferred shade of blonde is like arctic ice where Ally's is a delicious shade of golden honey. Both require very specific care that I would like to share with all of you. If you aren't a blonde that's okay because you will be eventually. Until then many of these tips and tricks will help even the darkest of distressed locks.

Let's begin with the bleaching process. Most likely your hairdresser uses between a 20 volume and 40 volume lift on you. Depending on how light you want your hair and how much pain you can stand. Forty volume is like the heat from a thousand burning suns. However beauty is pain so if you want amazing shimmery blonde hair you will suck it up or do what I do and have your hairdresser put a couple packets of sweet n low in the bleach. This is the single most amazing discovery in bleach processing. It removes ALL of the burning sensation!!

Next is your toner. There are a million and one types of toners in all different shades. Guaranteed though you aren't using one! Do not walk out of the salon without toning your newly bleached hair. This is what gives you your specific shade of blonde. Obviously I'm not going to share mine with you. Find your own!

The secret to keeping bleached blonde hair healthy is literally down the street at your grocery store. I prefer Whole Foods, but understandably you may not have one of these fantastic organic grocers near you so do the best you can. What you're looking for is coconut oil. That's right. Stop messing around with mayonnaise and eggs and whatever else you just read in a magazine. Coconut oil is where it's at!! It comes in a solid and melts in your hand. Apply it to your whole head and then leave it in there for at least a day. Pull your hair into a beautiful chignon and let it sit. Don't even think about wearing a rag on your head. Gross! If you have to cover your hair it needs to be with a silk scarf. This will keep your hair healthy and shiny and it helps your hair grow!

In order to maintain your color you will need to invest in a purple shampoo to keep out the brassiness. I have tried every purple shampoo on the market and there is only one that I would recommend. Paul Mitchell's Platinum Blonde color care shampoo. No need to mix this with regular shampoo because it won't turn your hair purple. Use it in good health and great hair!!

Love

Lauren Gardiner

COO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens

Welcome to our "Blog"

2009-07-27T21:07:00.000-07:00

Blonde Bombshell. Blondes have more fun. Diamonds are a girls best friend. (ok... not a blonde comment however, the most famous blonde of all time said it...) What do all of these quotes have in common? All of them are true. We can promise you this.

Vodka and Caviar or Italian Love Affair? This is a debate Lauren and I will battle out for centuries to come. If you don't know what we are referring to, it is time you stop watching so much trashy reality TV, and start reading this "blog." We recommend at least once per day. You can never have too much of us. We promise.

We are the founders and creators of the Las Vegas Style Sirens, the most elite beauty team and personal beauty concierge service in Las Vegas and this is one of our ongoing debates. Which OPI nail polish is better? Vodka and Caviar or Italian Love Affair? We verbally brawl over this at Port Of Subs at least three times a week. (2 out of those 3 days, Lauren has mustard/mayo combo dripping down her chin. Actually make that 3 out of 3. Ok Ok Ok it's usually me.) Diet Coke anyone?

Welcome to our "blog." (Ughhh that word is SOOO ugly)

We hate the word "blog." What does that even mean? (And if you seriously know where the word "blog" came from, please get off our "blog" RIGHT NOW) My beautiful sister Brittany calls it "Dioring" however, Lauren and I are in agreement that that is equally as ugly. We definitely need to find a new word for it. Any suggestions? We were thinking "lipglossing" but then we realized that too was equally as dumb. Bottom line, a new word is in order for noun and action alike.

***Just so you know... Lauren and I keep reading over this "blog" like we are standing in line practicing to audition for the latest Judd Apatow flick. (FYI he wrote 40 Year Old Virgin and Knocked Up) It's classy.***

For those of you who do not know, Vodka and Caviar is our signature OPI red nail polish. We wear it on our toes, fingernails, lips and anywhere that can be painted. Just kidding! Toes and fingers only. It is not approved for the lip area. We're workin' on it. We have recently discovered Italian Love Affair which is a beautiful orange based light pink with a oui bit of shimmer. (That is for all of our Australian fans. And if you are saying "Oui is French you a-holes." Please believe us when we tell you, we know what we are talking about.) Different as they may be, they are still equally as beautiful. And if you are thinking to yourself " This doesn't apply to me." Let us be the first to tell you, you are WRONG! We're probably staring at your fingers and toes, shaking our heads in shame right now, and you don't even know it. Please, for the love of all man kind, paint your nails. We don't even care what color. Just do it.

Moving on... we would like to say hello to all of our friends, clients, and future friends and clients. Please do not judge us on this first "blog" (Unless you think it is amazing and we should be the next Perez Hilton.) We are still working on getting the hang of things. We appreciate all of your support and we look forward to future "blogs." (Until a new name is designated)

Love
xoxox
Allyson Stagg
CEO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens
and
Lauren Gardiner
COO of The Las Vegas Style Sirens