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Hi Darlings, I had the pleasure of trying out and reviewing some summer must have beauty products. The video is just a quick look at some of my personal favorites and why. I posted the product descriptions and links for you below and if you don’t already follow my YouTube channel whatcha’ waiting for? Subscribe HERE “I teamed up with Glam.com to review some of their favorite beauty summer products, but all statements in this video reflect my honest opinions” Coast To Coast Ultra Soothing Aqua Mist Wild Rosella & Geranium Refresh & hydrate dry or sensitive skin with this soothing mist containing Tasmanian Sea Kelp, Wild Rosella & Organic Lavender Water to calm & soothe inflamed or irritated skin. Alterna Caviar Replenishing Moisture Milk Leave-In Conditioning Spray A leave-in conditioner that absorbs instantly and hydrates deeply to treat dry, brittle, or aging hair. Estee Lauder Pure Color Cheek Rush Cellophane sheer blush in a refreshing gel formula. Gillette Satin Care Ultra Sensitive Shave Gel Dermatologically tested, Satin Care® Ultra Sensitive shave gel will leave your skin feeling soft and smooth with each shave. This dye- and fragrance-free formula helps to minimize the risk of skin irritation. First Aid Beauty Facial Radiance Overnight Mask A gentle yet effective overnight cream that brightens and hydrates skin while sleeping. Bite Beauty BB for Lips A lip enhancing, five-in-one balm. Essential for the look and feel of just-kissed, healthy, and hydrated lips, this color-rich balm repairs, primes, and protects with SPF 15. JASON Naturals Gluten Free Body Wash Our gluten-free body wash gently cleanses while our nurturing blend of Vitamin E, Avocado Oil and Calendula Extract nourishes and hydrates. From the first use, your skin will feel touchably soft and luxuriously smooth. RapidLash Eyelash Enhancing Serum RapidLash Eyelash & Eyebrow Enhancing Serum is a unique formula of lash enhancing, conditioning, moisturizing and strengthening ingredients that synergistically work to help improve the overall appearance of eyelashes and eyebrows. Remington Soft Hairbands Hold hair back securely and comfortably while making a statement with these bold head wraps. Verb Sea Salt Spray Verb Sea Spray takes landlocked hair to the beach for loose, languid curls. Formulated with natural sea salt and smoothing moisturizers, this light mist infuses all hair types with oceanic waves for a breezy texture boost. #beauty #glam #review #summer

Hi darlings and happy Friday! I could not wait any longer to share the images from the conference along with a great big thank you to my sponsors. The conference this year was so amazing and you could feel the energy of these amazing women. I had a wonderful time teaching and sharing and I know that they left with a new sense of sisterhood and a desire to grow in their craft and businesses for some. This years sponsors were so generous and supportive so please check them out! Michael Levine, Inc. has been a great supporter of the blog and has been our fabric shopping host for the second year in a row. Their selection of fabrics and size of the store make our 2nd day shopping event an amazing experience as you will see in the pics below. They also have an online shop www.lowpricefabric.com which I recommend continuously on my blog and DIY postings. I get the majority of my fabric from Michael Levine, Inc. Simplicity Creative Group has been a supporter of the blog and conference for the 2nd year in a row. I can’t tell you how great it is to wok with them. Not only do they produce amazing patterns but together we have created the Mimi G for Simplicity Patterns releasing in August 2014! They will also be the first of the Big 4 pattern companies to have step by step video tutorials to accompany my patterns! Sulky provides beautiful decorative threads which I use for topstitching and embellishing. They also have great stabilizers which you can read about HERE. Sulky was a first time supporter of the conference and they were fantastic and so generous. Robert Kaufman Fabrics was a first time supporter of the conference and provided the attendees with samples of their amazing new Chambray fabrics. Although well known for their quilting fabrics they have an amazing selection of fashion fabrics including a variety of denim! found HERE Aurfil was a first year supporter and provided several wonderful decorative threads for the attendees. They are widely known and have a great selection of cotton and wool threads. Fiskars is a huge supporter of the blog and this was their 2nd year supporting the conference. Their generosity in providing all of the attendees with not one but two pairs of scissors is amazing! They are a leader in the industry and provide exceptional products. Pretty Girls Sew is a wonderful blog who not only has followed me for several years but is also responsible for the conference graphics both this year and last. We had a HUGE group of women this year and we practically took over the hotel and Michael Levine’s lol. I hope you enjoy the pics and maybe I will see you next year. DVD’s of the vent including behind the scenes will be available in a few weeks. click images to enlarge #conference #events #sewing #sponsors

Hi Darlings, I am beaming this morning after reading the WIRED Magazine article I was included in this month. Not only am I in the online edition of the magazine but I will be in the printed edition in August!! It was really great being able to talk abut how I use Pinterest and how important it is to my creativity. I also had the immense pleasure of being interviewed by Amanda Fortini who has written for the NY Times, Rolling Stone, New Yorker and Elle among others and to top it off I was photographed by an amazing talent, Maciek Jasik who’s body of work you can see HERE You can read the article HERE! It was a totally cool experience, and I am thankful to have been included. If you don’t already know Eddie Rossetti and Gaby Dalkin go check them out, Eddie has a great eye for menswear and Gaby makes me hungry! Now on to what I have on and why I could live in this jumpsuit! I grabbed this knit romper in LA a few days ago, and I so wish they had it in other colors so I could by them ALL. But, since they didn’t I guess I will need to make my own versions. It is uber comfy and the perfect look for running around time while being fly. The jumpsuit is by Freeloader, but I could not locate it online, so I found you some options below.. Jumpsuit (similar) HERE and HERE / Steve Madden Heels (similar) HERE / Burberry Bag HERE /MK Jewelry #romper #stevemadden #freeloader #pinterest #wired

Hi Darlings, I know I owe you guys some outfit pics so now that the conference is over I can catch up and start posting pics lol. This dress is from last weeks Variety Poker 2014 Celebrity Event that Randy and I attend yearly. We had a great time, like we do every year, but this time I had Adrienne here. It was nice to be able to share that with her. This wrap dress is so cute and comfy but I can’t remember where in the world I saw the fabric first. As for today….I am heading to the gym in a few minutes after clicking publish, and I am so terrified lol! I have been away from my trainer about three weeks now, so I know it is going to be bad! Have a wonderful day my darlings and I will see you tomorrow. DIY Dress / Fabric Options HERE / Aldo Clutch (nude version) HERE / Steve Madden Nude Heels HERE Regal Maxi back on Stitched9 #aldo #Floral #charity #wrapdress #variety #michaellevine #stevemadden #DIY

Hi Darlings, I am beyond exhausted both physically and mentally from the amazing months of planning and two full days of conference fun and excitement. We had an AMAZING GROUP this year and I can’t tell you how much encouragement, love and motivation was shared between the almost 200 attendees. I have so much to share over the next several days that I though I would start by posting some of the social media pics and comments. I also has the immense pleasure of finally announcing my very own pattern collection with Simplicity!! Which I will post more about this week and will share pics and a sneak peek! And for those of you who could not make it, the DVD of the entire 3rd Annual Mimi G Sewing, Fashion & Style Conference will be available for purchase in a few weeks once my team gets through editing all the footage. I am so thankful to my guest speakers, Judy Kessinger of FitNice System and Shaun Ayala of Socialcated.com. To the attendees who flew in from all part so the US and the UK I thank you deeply for your support and your love and I hope to see you next year! To my staff and family, you guys are amazing and I thank you for every single thing you do. To my amazing sponsors this year, Thank you for your support! MICHAEL LEVINE, INC, SIMPLICITY CREATIVE GROUP, SULKY, ROBERT KAUFMAN FABRICS, FISKARS, AURFIL, PRETTY GIRLS SEW, RILEY BLAKE DESIGNS. Most importantly and above all things I thank GOD for the talent he blessed me with and the ability to share it with all of you. Here is a look at some of the great pics posted on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. ALSO… if you have images to post from the conference please make sure to use #mgsfs2014 so that we can track them and repost. Now I am off to take a nap! CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE 2014 Mimi G’s Sewing Fashion & Style Conference Sponsors MICHAEL LEVINE, INC, SIMPLICITY CREATIVE GROUP, SULKY, ROBERT KAUFMAN FABRICS, FISKARS, AURFIL, PRETTY GIRLS SEW

Hi Darlings, I have exciting news to share with you. Guess who’s been selected to be a #ChevyChic correspondent for the 2014 Essence Street Style Awards going down in New York City? Yes, ME! If you don’t already know, Fashion in NY is incredible, and must be experienced by all true fashionistas. So, here is the deal… First we need you to share the love and vote for your favorite Street Style Maven Nominee by clicking http://bit.ly/ChevyMaven and then upload your own photo for a chance to win! The winning #ChevyChic photo  will receive: Roundtrip coach airfare for winner and one guest 3 days/2 nights hotel accommodation for two in NYC Transportation to and from the hotel in NYC Plus a $500 #ChevyChic shopping spree! What are you waiting for, go ENTER NOW and I will see you in NY #streetstyle #contest #chevy #essence #newyork

Hi Darlings, I am excited to share so really great news. I along with five other amazing bloggers have joined in the Vanity Fair Lingerie “Women Who Do” blogger program. The “Women Who Do” initiative is an uplifting campaign dedicated to praising and celebrating everyday triumphs of women. You guys all know how important that is to me on so many levels. I make it a personal goal to use my blog to uplift and motivate women so joining this campaign was a must. I know so many women who have inspired ME and are accomplishing great things both in their personal and professional lives. I can personal say that I have not always known the importance of a good fitting bra, and it wasn’t until I was in my late 20’s that I was properly fitted for one. A great quality bra is so important and as a stylist and fashion blogger I know that having the proper fitting undergarments will make you feel secure, pretty and even sexy!  Not only should it be supportive in the right places but flattering and comfortable too. As part of the campaign, I will be sharing some great tidbits with all of you, like of my favorite Vanity Fair Lingerie products, better bra fitting tips and the best bras for certain body types. I will also be sharing info on Bras Across America: Dress for Success and Vanity Fair Lingerie National Lift TOUR. Vanity Fair Lingerie has teamed up with Dress for Success, an organization dedicated to promoting the economic independence of disadvantaged women by providing professional attire, career development tools and a network of support to uplift women everywhere! Through this partnership, Vanity Fair Lingerie will be traveling around the U.S. fitting women just like you for more shape and support. For every fitting they do, a brand new bra will be donated to Dress for Success. The ability to invest in good quality undergarments is not an option for some, but that doesn’t mean we don’t all deserve to have a great fitting bra to help us along our journey. I am so excited to be part of this campaign and know you will join me on this journey to uplift the women in your lives. To learn more about the program, and see when the #LiftTOUR will be in your area, visit the “Women Who Do”Vanity Fair Lingerie site HERE Stay connected with Vanity Fair Lingerie via  Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

We have all heard that sugar has no value from a nutritional perspective – and that is really true. Also true is that sugar, while grown naturally (sugar cane, honey, agave nectar etc). is not a food group and has absolutely ZERO health benefits. We are talking here mainly refined added sugar. So you can still eat your fresh fruits without worry. White sugar, brown sugar, honey, molasses, agave nectar, sweet n low, equal all bad bad bad. But before we get into detail of how and what effects sugar has on your body let me share with you the reason for this post. I hear and see lots of people working really hard to workout and tweak their nutritional profiles for healthier eating. And that is awesome and many find weight loss, fat loss and other healthy success from those changes. But sometimes I see individuals hit a wall – weight loss stops, fat loss stops or in some cases I see individuals gaining weight not muscle but getting fat. And then the frustration sets in over time and exasperation in working out daily and managing a healthy diet but to no avail. This post is to challenge you to take that next step in tweaking your nutritional profile – sharpening that pencil just a little more. Because as many trainers are known to say, “…you cannot out train a bad diet.” So finding the hidden sugars in what you eat is a must. You must look at labels and make better decisions because when it comes to added sugar it has made its way into practically everything that we eat Today’s Work It Wednesday post will challenge you to want to change. READ ON. How much sugar does the average American eat? Sugar shows up naturally in lots of foods (fructose in fruits or lactose in milk), but those aren’t the types of sugars in the spotlight. Instead, it’s the sugar in the doughnuts and sodas or even in the maple syrup that we drizzle onto our pancakes. These are the sugars that are added to foods in processing or preparation. Per the AHA’s 2009 scientific statement, the report noted that Americans consumed an average of 22 teaspoons per day or approximately 130 pounds of added sugar per year. Twenty two teaspoons are equivalent to approximately 355 calories. Eating this much sugar can create two main problems – it either adds calories to your diet or it displaces other nutritious foods. How do our bodies process sugar? When we eat sugar our bodies have 2 options to deal with it: Burn it for energy Convert to fat and store it in your fat cells Depending on your genetic predisposition, your body might be better at processing sugar as energy, or you might be more likely to store it as fat.  Think of this like you think of people with faster metabolisms versus people with slower metabolisms. With sugar in our blood stream the pancreas detects a rush of sugar and it releases a hormone called insulin to deal with all of that excess sugar. Insulin is the “key” to open the “locks” of the cells to pull the sugar from our blood. Insulin helps regulate that level of sugar in our blood; the more sugar in the blood stream, the more insulin is released. But insulin can only help get so much blood sugar into the cells at a time. Insulin helps store all of this glucose in the liver and muscles as glycogen and in fat cells (as triglycerides). Unfortunately, the more often this process takes place (the more sugar you consume), the more severe the blood sugar spike is, and the more insulin is required. This means it becomes easier and easier to skip using sugar as energy and go straight to conversion and store fat in fat cells. Insulin does a lot of good, but also insulin helps fat cells form fat. Also over time the body’s cells become resistant to the action of the insulin. The body normally releases insulin into the bloodstream in response to a meal. Insulin’s job is to help the body’s cells take in the glucose, or sugar, from the carbohydrates in food, so they can use it for energy. But when the body’s cells become insulin resistant, the sugar from food begins to build up in the blood, even while the cells themselves are starving for it. High levels of insulin tend to build up in the blood, too, because the body releases more and more insulin to try to transport the large amounts of sugar out of the bloodstream and into the cells. Now, you might be thinking: I’ll just eat less sugar and won’t have this issue, right? That is a great start, but that’s only half of the battle.  Our bodies actually process certain types of carbohydrates in a very similar way to processing pure sugar. You have heard of the Glycemic Index, and its lesser known associate: Glycemic Load. The Glycemic Index is the calculation of how quickly a particular type of food increases one’s blood sugar level, on a scale from 1-100 (100 being pure glucose). Harvard researchers have found that things like white bread, french fries, and other simple carbohydrates (cakes, cookies, soda, candy etc) have nearly identical effects on our blood sugar as glucose. Generally, the more refined or processed the food, the more likely it’ll be to get converted quickly to sugar in our body. For now, hopefully you’re coming to a conclusion with something like this: “Oh, maybe fat isn’t making me fat. Maybe it’s the sugar and carbohydrates that I’m consuming…” And unfortunately, it’s not JUST sugar, but also fake sugar. Here is a quick list of what sugar can be listed as on a label: Agave nectar Brown sugar Cane crystals Cane sugar Corn sweetener Corn syrup Crystalline fructose Dextrose Evaporated cane juice Organic evaporated cane juice Fructose Fruit juice concentrates Glucose High-fructose corn syrup Honey Invert sugar Lactose Maltose Malt syrup Molasses Raw sugar Sucrose Sugar Syrup Our Work It Wednesday post is educational but without action it is just words! I challenge you to decrease your sugar intake. I challenge you to start eating more real foods and less processed ones. I challenge you to cut back on candy, cakes, donuts and soda. I challenge you to only shop the outer aisles of your supermarket. I invite you to take this challenge: Ditch the added sugar and artificial sweeteners in your diet for two weeks. For the next two weeks, choose foods that contain little or no added sugar or artificial sweetener. Here are the details: Choose foods that have 5 grams of sugar or less per serving. You can find this information on the Nutrition Facts label. Also limit natural sweeteners, such as agave, honey and molasses, to 5 grams or less a serving. Avoid artificial sweeteners completely. Add fruits — fresh or frozen — to foods to add flavor and nutrition. Fruits, vegetables and milk have natural sugars and are found on the outer aisles of your supermarket. For example, an 8-ounce container of plain yogurt has 8 – 12 grams of natural sugar (lactose). That’s OK. To figure out how much added sugar a yogurt has, subtract 12 grams from the total grams of sugar listed on the Nutrition Facts label. What is left is the amount of added sugar. After you’re completed the challenge, please share your experiences. How did foods and beverages taste throughout the two weeks and after? Were you surprised to see what foods or beverages contained added sugars or artificial sweeteners? Surprised to see the amount of sugar that’s added to foods and beverages? Any other interesting discoveries? Are you up to the challenge? Remember consistency is key! Life is going to happen, live it, love it, embrace it and make a daily workout part of your plan. Until we meet again… yours in fitness -Cynthia 2014 Mimi G’s Sewing Fashion & Style Conference Sponsors MICHAEL LEVINE, INC, SIMPLICITY CREATIVE GROUP, SULKY, ROBERT KAUFMAN FABRICS, FISKARS, AURFIL, PRETTY GIRLS SEW

Hi Darlings, I am starting to get butterflies in my tummy in anticipation of the conference 😉 and before I sign off for the next few days from the blog I wanted to leave you with a picture of the lovely Kelly who recently made the my Front Slit Maxi Tutorial (purchase HERE) I love showcasing Kelly because she always rocks it!, and is so inspiring to me. Below are a few more pics of other amazing women who have started sewing because of my tutorials and are knocking it out of the park. Love you guys so much and make sure to follow via social media FB, IG, TW to stay in the loop now, during and after the conference. Click images for full view

Hi darlings, as the conference approaches I find myself with less and less time to do anything! to be honest I have been in  my sweatpants and tank for the last three days glued to my office. Since I don’t have any pretty pics of DIY’s or retail therapy purchases to show I am sharing the prettiest pics of all….my family. After our long drive from Cali to Arizona and visiting the Grand Canyon (POST HERE) we spent the evening in Utah, but it was dark and late so I have no pics from that part of the state (I do have plenty from our way back) so here are pics from our next stop through Colorado. I loved!!!! Colorado so much that I wanted to stay longer, but we had a schedule to keep. I would love to visit again and spend sometime enjoying all there is to do. The state is simply PICTURESQUE! I also must mention (per the kids request) that we stopped  for gas after crossing into Fruita Colorado, and the kids noticed a Dinosaur Museum so, of course we stopped in. Can we just say that this was the coolest place and we had a blast! You can check it out HERE 2014 Mimi G’s Sewing Fashion & Style Conference Sponsors MICHAEL LEVINE, INC, SIMPLICITY CREATIVE GROUP, SULKY, ROBERT KAUFMAN FABRICS, FISKARS, AURFIL, PRETTY GIRLS SEW

Hi Darlings, you ever get those days where nothing fits? I promise you that during mother natures visit I gain so much water weight that I can’t zip up my jeans, lol! so instead of feeling like a stuffed sausage I pull out the flowing maxi dresses that always make me feel taller, slender and pretty. This dress is old, I made it in August of 2013 and wore it just the one time so I thought I would showcase it once again. The pattern review was done on 2013 but I have posted it below again because this dress is easy and fun to make. The fabric is a gorgeous, bright silky ITY knit that I got from Michael Levine’s last year, but lucky for you they carry an assortment of GREAT ITY’s (like THIS ONE) perfect for this pattern. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend and I will see you next week! McCall Pattern HERE / Fabric Options HERE / J. Crew Bracelets / Forever 21 Belt Pattern: Pattern M6700 Fabric Used:  Fabric Options HERE Use Coupon Code: “MIMI10” fro 10% off your purchase. Pattern Sizing: I cut the 8 and made a small fit adjustment to the bodice. Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope when you were done? Yep Were the instructions easy to follow? This is a fast and easy dress to make, which is why it has been such a popular pattern this season. What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? Ummm It’s a maxi, I love anything that is a maxi, lol and I had seen it made up several times already so I knew when I came across the right fabric I would be making it. It is flowy, fun and fast to make which makes it a #winner Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: I took out about 1″ out of the bodice because it was a little too big for my small frame. Would you sew it again? If I need an instant gratification project I may pull it out and make it out of a fall transitional fabric and wear it with a blazer. Would you recommend it to others? Most certainly! 2014 Mimi G’s Sewing Fashion & Style Conference Sponsors MICHAEL LEVINE, INC, SIMPLICITY CREATIVE GROUP, SULKY, ROBERT KAUFMAN FABRICS, FISKARS, AURFIL, PRETTY GIRLS SEW #colorful #m6700 #patternreview #Dress #Maxi

Hi Darlings, I am SO EXCITED about the conference this year. Even with the amount of work my team has to do this week and next we are thrilled that it is almost time. I am also really excited because I have an announcement that I am dying to share but I can’t until the conference! If you are attending you will hear it first. Because of the hectic schedule I am under, I have had little time for picture taking, but since I was running out for a quick meeting I thought I would snap a few pics for you guys. I love these camouflage pants I grabbed at the GAP, I usually never wear camo but I couldn’t resist, and of course I had to pair it with a Mimi G Style Tee (you can purchase Tee’s and Tanks HERE) a gifted necklace, my favorite Jessica Simpson platforms and my purple Coach bag. Camo Pants HERE or HERE / Mimi G Style Tee’s HERE /Jessica Simpson Platforms (old) / Coach Bag (old) / Necklace Gifted 2014 Mimi G’s Sewing Fashion & Style Conference Sponsors MICHAEL LEVINE, INC, SIMPLICITY CREATIVE GROUP, SULKY, ROBERT KAUFMAN FABRICS, FISKARS, AURFIL, PRETTY GIRLS SEW