Jennifer L. Scott's Blog, page 89

Ten-Item Wardrobe Talk-Through Spring 2014 (and Stella & Dot Giveaway!)

Thank you for your overwhelmingly positive response to last week's ten-item wardrobe video. My inbox has been filled with your wonderful comments and, of course, all of your questions. Because I've received so many comments and emails I am not able to individually respond to each one, but hopefully this week's video will answer many of your questions. This week's video is a talk through of the garments and shares with you my inspiration for this year's wardrobe and examines old and new pieces.

If you are unable to see the video above, click here, look in the sidebar of this blog, or check out my channel: www.youtube.com/TheDailyConnoisseur (make sure you subscribe!).

For links to every item pictured in this video, visit my original ten-item wardrobe post here.

Here are some FAQs from viewers:


Gina asks: Do you have a summer 10 item wardrobe too? Spring has begun here, but it 60 degrees. When summer begins for you, will this lovely spring collection still work for you in summer?

This wardrobe will take me to the end of summer. As summer approaches, I will probably use the sweaters less and less. I might purchase one or two items in the summer to supplement my wardrobe, or I might not. Last summer the only garment I purchased was the Anthropologie water color dress you see in this year's video, for example.


Lilly asks: I was wondering if you could tell us what is this beautiful music you have in the video? Thanks again for all the wonderful posts over the years :)

If you are ever curious about the music featured in my videos, or about any item featured in a video, always check my blog post or the info box below the YouTube video. I always credit an item when I can. If the specific item is no longer available online, I provide a link for the brand or retailer. The music in the ten-item wardrobe video is royalty-free and copyright-free music purchased from pond5.com and is called "Paris Love". Thank you Lilly!

Evaline asks: Your lip colour here is lovely for spring...would you mind sharing the name with us?


Many people asked about my lip color. The video was shot over a few days and I am wearing different lip colors in different shots. I used the Hourglass Femme Nude Lip Stylo No. 6 in some shots and By Terry Bitten lip gloss in others.

Sara asks: Can I ask what you layer under sheer tops, like your Equipment blouses? A cami? In white, or do you try to find one that matches your skin tone? I have the worst time solving the "sheer issue."

I have several camisoles in beige, white and black. I find the beige ones that are closest to my own skintone look best under a slightly sheer blouse.

Alonememe asks: I don't really get this idea of extras. I understand when it comes to tank tops, underwear etc. - you need them to build the outfit, but having few tops that you wear as normal outfit is really having 20 or 30 core outfits. Could you please explain this? Why do you separate core items from extras? Is this more handy? :)


Core items vs. extras are a great way to organize your wardrobe. Think of your core items as telling a story and the extras accent this. The core items are the major items, the foundation that builds the wardrobe. The extras compliment the core.

For my readers in the Southern Hemisphere who are going into Fall/ Winter, check out Chic Mummy's blog. She has compiled a lovely Autumn ten-item wardrobe. Thank you Sarah!

For more on the ten-item wardrobe, check out my book, Lessons from Madame Chic.

Huffington Post
My ten-item wardrobe is now up on Huffington Post Style.

Stella & Dot Giveaway



I purchased two of my necklaces this season from my friend Lucy, who is a stylist with Stella & Dot. Stella & Dot do fun, affordable jewelry that is very au courant. Lucy was kind enough to offer to give away one necklace to a reader of the Daily Connoisseur. We chose to give away the Linden necklace- a beautiful statement piece that is perfect for spring.

This giveaway is open worldwide! Please enter via the rafflecopter widget below. The only valid entries will be through rafflecopter. The winner will be displayed on the rafflecopter widget one week from today and will be contacted by me.

And be sure to check out all of the fabulous, affordable jewelry on Lucy's Stella & Dot website by clicking here.

Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway


See you next week for a review and tutorial for the Wink & Winn handbag. Have a great week!


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Ten-Item Wardrobe Spring 2014

It's finally here! My spring ten-item wardrobe video. I had a lot of fun making this video, as you will see. This wardrobe will take me from now until the end of summer. It is a combination of new and old pieces (some are very old!) and I am in love with it.

This week, you can watch the video, which is set to music and is shot fashion show-style. Take notes, enjoy the show and get inspired to curate your own ten-item wardrobe. Next week's video will be a talk through of all of the pieces so you can see where I got my inspiration, identify the old and new items and understand my thought process when putting this wardrobe together.


So this week, sit back and enjoy the show! If you are unable to see the video above, click here, look in the sidebar of this blog, or check out my channel: www.youtube.com/TheDailyConnoisseur

And now for a list of items featured in the video.

Please note: because many of the items are older and not purchased this season, I am providing links for the brands, rather than for the specific item. As always, this video is meant to provide inspiration for you. If you like some of the older looks, have fun searching for similar garments in the shops. Everything featured in this video was purchased by me, with the exception of the Wink & Winn handbag, which was sent to me to review in a forthcoming post (it's custom designed by me... very cool and we will be doing a giveaway on the blog!)

Let's check out the core items first...

Dresses



A.P.C. chambray dress
A.P.C. linen dress
Zara blouse
Equipment sleeveless silk blouse
Paige skyline ankle peg jeans in white
B.P. Nordstrom White tee
Zara (nautical)
lace tee B.P. Nordstrom Flowy tees (black and white)

Sweaters and Cardigans


For Spring/ Summer if you live in a hot climate like me, put a few sweaters in your extras. If you live in an unpredictable climate where the weather often turns, include some in your core items and keep as many as you need in your extras to stay warm. (This will be discussed further next week.)

J Crew cashmere mint sweater

Lightweight Coat


Zara


Blazers


Zara red blazer

Shoes


Dolce Vita white snake sandal
London Sole red patent croc pirouette ballet flat
Ferragamo low-heeled tan suede pump

Hats


Straw and Black Panama hats (Purchased from a stand at the 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica)

Handbags


Jewell navy “style icon” handbag **I purchased this from my friend Lisa, who is Jewell stylist. Awesome handbag line.
Oliver Peoples

Jewelry


Tassel necklace and Stone necklace A.P.C. Amazon necklace




Let me know what you think! Use the hashtag #TenItemWardrobe and help spread the word. See you next week for a ten-item wardrobe talk through.

For more on the Ten-Item Wardrobe, check out my book, Seasonal Author Newsletter

Le No Makeup Look Matte Makeup Tutorial

This week we are exploring "le no makeup look" with a new matte palette I recently purchased from Tarte. But, as always, you do not need to use the exact makeup I use in this video. You can most likely recreate this subtle look from the makeup you already have! All you need are some soft pink, mauve, plum or taupe matte eyeshadows and a soft pink matte blush. This is such a lovely look for when you want to look as natural as possible. No shimmer, no sparkle, just beautiful shades that blend seamlessly into your skin.

I also share a no makeup look trick of mine: to only apply mascara to the outer lashes. This gives the illusion of long lashes but looks marvelously natural at the same time. I wore this very makeup look in last week's video discussing the ten-item wardrobe. I hope you enjoy!

If you are unable to see the video above, CHANEL perfection lumiere foundation

MAC studio finish concealer

Sephora eyebrow editor in Honey Blonde

Tarte CC Matte palette

CHANEL inimitable intense mascara

Dior Porcelaine nail polish

Lessons from Madame Chic.

FTC: all makeup featured in this video was purchased by me.


** Music in the video: Frédéric Chopin - Nocturne In F Minor, Op. 55. Copyright-free music I purchased from pond5.com

How do you like this look. Will you try it this season?

News
I am featured this week on Kimberly Wilson's Tranquility Du Jour podcast. Check it out here!

Certified Nutritional Therapist, Chelsea Blackbird, reveals the valuable reminders she gleaned from Lessons from Madame Chic in her lovely review on the Parisian Influence blog post (and she loves it!).

Natasha from Seasonal Author Newsletter

Get Your Spring Ten-Item Wardrobe Ready

Before this week's post begins, check out the beautiful Slovak copy of Lessons from Madame Chic, which was sent to me by my Slovakian publisher, Ikar. What a treat! I look forward to connecting with my Slovakian readers very soon.


Spring is officially here and this week I wanted to talk about getting your spring ten-item wardrobe ready. Many of you have probably already started this. I know I have as you are expecting a video to come out very soon :)



If you have been practicing a ten-item wardrobe, this should be easy and fun for you. You already know what to do. Store away your winter items that you no longer need. Keep any sweaters or lightweight coats on hand in case the weather turns (and these days, the weather always seems to be turning!), bring out the clothes from last spring/ summer that you plan to use again this year and mend anything that needs to be mended.

At this point you should write down a list of anything you need to purchase for your spring wardrobe. (All of my readers in the southern Hemisphere who are not going into spring, you can do this for your fall wardrobe.) Keep in mind the colors you'd like to wear this season and plan what would go nicely with what you already have. Don't forget to include the "extras" (like tee shirts) and accessories on this list. Keep your list handy and your budget in mind when you're out shopping and slowly, like you're on a treasure hunt, you can tick items off your list. This part is so much fun.

Hang your items proudly in your closet and just enjoy yourself this season.

If you haven't yet started your own ten-item wardrobe, it's never too late to start. Don't be intimidated by the number TEN. Ten is just a guideline. You can have twenty core items if that works better for you. It's not about the number, it's about your fresh new mentality about your wardrobe. You have chosen to think of your capsule wardrobe as art and you have decided to not let another day go by where you aren't wearing something that is authentically you. So just start wherever you are. You are not behind. For more information on the ten-item wardrobe, check out my book, click here, look in the sidebar of this blog, or check out my channel: www.youtube.com/TheDailyConnoisseur


In The News

Hamilton's JenEric Generation blog discusses her favorite style points from Lessons from Madame Chic.

I have finished my second round of edits for book two and have sent it off to my publisher at Simon & Schuster. Hurray! Check out my Seasonal Author Newsletter

Curling Iron Tutorial, Hair Chat & Maijan GIVEAWAY

This week we are exploring the world of hair. I have received a lot of requests to recreate the curls I wore in my New Year's Message video as well as an update on current hair care products I'm using. This week's video gives you both. We start with the tutorial, in which you'll note that the secret to having soft, voluminous curls (I think perhaps the Duchess of Cambridge employs this look every now and then?) is to alternate the direction of the curl with the curling iron.


Check out this week's video to see the entirety of the tutorial. If you are unable to see the video above, Seasonal Author Newsletter

Get Ready With Me: Makeup Edition

After our intense month discussing The Untethered Soul, I thought it would be fun to do a get ready with me video: makeup edition. In this video I'm getting ready to attend a casual business luncheon for the Harvey Mudd Entrepreneurial Network (remember when I spoke to them last fall about artistic entrepreneurship?).

I hope you'll check out this week's video to join me for a chat and glean some makeup inspiration. If you are unable to see the video above, click here, look in the sidebar of this blog, or check out my channel: www.youtube.com/TheDailyConnoisseur

Here's an image of the pink Zara blazer I wore that day. You know I love my blazers! This is a new edition to my spring ten-item wardrobe, which you'll be seeing soon...



Here's a list of the makeup I use in this video:

YSL Top Secrets BB Cream

MAC pro longwear concealer

MAC studio finish concealer

MAC blot pressed powder

Urban Decay primer potion**

Urban Decay NAKED palette**

CHANEL kohl eyeliner in ambre

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush** in mood exposure

Sephora eyebrow editor in Honey Blonde

MAC lip liner in Strip Down

Hourglass Femme nude lip stylo** no. 6

Cruelty-free makeup
Did you know that not all of your favorite makeup brands are cruelty-free? Thank you to Jessie, a reader of the Daily Connoisseur, who sent me Peta's Seasonal Author Newsletter

The Problem of the Day Untethered Soul Book Club Pt 4

We arrive at the end of our Untethered Soul book club with the problem of the day, or problem du jour as I like to call it.

There is so much more I could have talked about with this book but it would go on all year. I chose to end with the problem du jour because I think it fits nicely with the other subjects we've been talking about.

Michael Singer writes:

Location 1309 “Each person has what we’ll call the ‘problem of the day’. This is the thing that is bothering them the most at any given moment. When the current problem isn’t bothering them, then the next one pops up, and when that one isn’t bothering them, the next one pops up.”

Can you relate to this? I certainly can (as you'll see in the video)...

Location 1312 “Your thoughts tend to focus on what is bothering you today. Your thoughts are about the problem, why it is bothering you, and what you can do about it. If you don’t do something about this, it will go on for the rest of your life.”

Yikes!

Location 1340 “You are capable of ceasing the absurdity of listening to the perpetual problems of your psyche.”

Location 1349 “You just stop telling your mind that its job is to fix your personal problems”

Location 1359 “The Truth is, everything will be okay as soon as you are okay with everything.”

This is big.

Location 1364 “By watching your mind, you will notice that it is engaged in the process of trying to make everything okay. Consciously remember that this is not what you want to do and then gently disengage. Do not fight it.”

Location 1366 “Instead of fighting the mind, just don’t participate in it.”

Location 1368 “The key is to be quiet. It’s not that your mind has to be quiet. You be quiet. You, the one inside watching the neurotic mind, just relax. You will then naturally fall behind the mind because you have always been there. You are not the thinking mind; you are aware of the thinking mind. You are the consciousness that is behind the mind and is aware of the thoughts.

Location 1404 “Now what used to hold you down becomes what wakes you up” This is my favorite quote from the book! :)

Location 1541 “When you are comfortable with pain passing through you, you will be free.”

Location 1992 “The purpose of your life is to enjoy and learn from your experiences. You were not put on Earth to suffer. You’re not helping anybody by being miserable”.

To hear my expanded thoughts on this subject, check out this week's video. If you are unable to see the video above, click here, look in the sidebar of this blog, or check out my channel: www.youtube.com/TheDailyConnoisseur


This week I would love to know what your thoughts are on the problem of the day...

The 90-Day Screenplay
Attention screenwriters: My writing mentor, Al Watt of the LA Writers' Lab, has published his most recent book, The 90-Day Screenplay. I highly recommend his work to anyone interested in completing a writing project. His classes were invaluable in giving me the tools, motivation and discipline I needed to write my own books. Al is also the author of The 90-Day Novel and The 90-Day Rewrite.

Thank you to all of you for participating in this book club. I have enjoyed your comments and insights immensely.

See you next week! xx

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Remove Your Inner Thorn Untethered Soul Book Club Pt. 3

Our Untethered Soul book club continues with part 3: Remove Your Inner Thorn.

Those of you who follow me on twitter and facebook know I'm going through book edits and a kitchen renovation and it is for this reason that this blog post will be lighter than the last two. So this week on the blog I am sharing my favorite quotes from this section.

Please watch this week's video (which discusses this all in depth) for the full discussion. Thank you for all of your comments and insight. I know this topic isn't what we typically discuss here on the Daily Connoisseur but as connoisseurs of life we must commit ourselves to being beautiful from the inside out :)

If you are unable to see the video above, click here, look in the sidebar of this blog, or check out my channel: www.youtube.com/TheDailyConnoisseur

Favorite quotes on removing your inner thorn:

Location 1271 “You are either trying to stop suffering, controlling your environment to avoid suffering, or worrying about suffering in the future”.

Location 1288 “You don’t have to constantly be mulling over what you said or what this person thinks of you. What kind of life are you going to have if you worry about these things all the time? Inner sensitivity is a symptom of non- well-being. It’s the same as when the body sends pain or displays other symptoms when it’s not well. “

“Pain is not bad; it’s how the body talks to you. When you overeat, you get a stomachache. When you do something that puts too much stress on your arm, it starts to hurt. The body is communicating through its universal language: pain. Your psyche is communicating through its universal language: fear. Self-consciousness, jealousy, insecurity, anxiety- they are all fear.”

Location 1722 “So there are two ways you can live: you can devote your life to staying in your comfort zone, or you can work on your freedom”. YES!! (that was my note when reading this quote).

Location 1341 “You can wake up in the morning, look forward to the day, and not worry about what will happen. Your daily life can be like a vacation. Work can be fun; family can be fun; you can just enjoy all of it. That does not mean you don’t do your best; you just have fun doing your best. Then, at night when you go to sleep, you let it all go.”

As always, I would love to know what you think about all of this. I try to respond to every comment, so please share your experience below!

The kitchen renovation is going well but all is very hectic. I will do a blog about it when it's finished.

Also book edits are going really well. Book 2 is going to be fabulous and I just know you're going to love it.

See you next week for the final installment of the Untethered Soul book club: The Problem of the Day.

xx

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Burn and Release The Untethered Soul Book Club Pt. 2

Welcome to week 2 of our Untethered Soul book club: burn and release.

I'm not sure if Michael Singer actually calls this technique "burn & release", but that's my way of labeling it so that it's helpful to me. This has helped me more than any other technique in the book. Whenever I have an inner disturbance (anger, annoyance, embarrassment, etc.) rather than stuffing my feelings away or shaming myself for feeling them (Why am I feeling this way? What's wrong with me?), I now allow the emotion to be. I observe it and I allow it to pass through me. I call this burn and release because (and I've been practicing this a lot lately!) I actually feel a physical burning sensation in my heart as I process the feeling.

We're so used to stuffing and concealing our true feelings in order to contribute to our perfect facades, that those feelings are never processed. Yes, burn and release can be difficult and even painful at first, but once you get in the habit of it, you can actually look forward to confronting your true feelings, processing them and letting them go!

Michael Singer suggests that when someone says or does something that causes an inner disturbance in you to let it go immediately (process it immediately). Don't save it for later:

Location 1065 “The law is very straightforward: When your stuff gets hit, let go right then because it will be harder later. It won’t be easier if you explore it or play with it, hoping to take the edge off”.

Location 1061 “The stuff that holds you down periodically rears its head. When it does, let it go. You simply permit the pain to come up into your heart and pass through. If you do that, it will pass. If you are sincerely seeking truth, you’ll let go every time. This is the beginning and end of the entire path- you surrender yourself to the process of emptying yourself”.

You can actually be at peace with inner disturbance! This is true freedom. Now, what other people say and do have no power over you. You can process those feelings and deal with them in a liberating way.

Location 1486 “Somebody can say something to you that can cause your heart to react and catch fire, but then it passes. It’s a temporary experience. Most people can hardly imagine what it would be like to be at peace with inner disturbance. But if you do not learn to be comfortable with it, you will devote your life to avoiding it”.

“If you feel embarrassed, it’s just a feeling. It’s just a part of creation. If you feel jealousy and your heart burns, just look at it objectively, like you would a mild bruise. It’s a thing in the universe that is passing through your system. Laugh at it, have fun with it, but don’t be afraid of it.”

Location 1529 “Sometimes you will notice that it feels hot inside as pain passes. In fact, as you relax into the energy of the pain, you may feel tremendous heat in your heart. That is the pain being purified from your heart. Learn to enjoy that burning. It does not seem enjoyable, but you will learn to enjoy it because it is freeing you. In truth, pain is the price of freedom. And the moment you are willing to pay that price, you will no longer be afraid. The moment you are not afraid of the pain, you’ll be able to face all of life’s situations without fear.”

For more insights on all of this, check out this week's video. If you are unable to see the video above, click here, look in the sidebar of this blog, or visit my channel: www.youtube.com/TheDailyConnoisseur

Please join in on the book club discussion! Let us know what you think in the comments section of either the blog or YouTube channel, or tweet me, facebook me, instagram me using the hashtag #dailyconnoisseur I would love to hear from you.

See you next time when we discuss "the inner thorn".

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The Voice In Your Head: Untethered Soul Book Club Pt. 1

Our Untethered Soul book club has finally arrived! So many of you have told me you're reading this book and it is already changing your life. I'm so happy we finally get to discuss it.

I read the Untethered Soul several months ago and right around the time I finished it, my dear friend, Matt, sent me a picture of my book in Grand Central Station, NYC. I was completely delighted to see Lessons from Madame Chic sitting right next to the Untethered Soul on the table.

There are so many topics to discuss in this book, we could talk about it all year. But what I plan to do with this book club is post four videos that discuss the four topics in the book that spoke to me the most.

I want this to be an interactive book club, so please write about your thoughts in the comment section of either the blog or YouTube channel, tweet me, facebook me, instagram me or shoot your own response video or blog. I would love to hear from you.

As I started to film this first video, I realized that this book is harder to talk about than I thought. The irony of it all was that the "voice in my head" was telling me I sound completely crazy talking about this stuff! But I have decided to put myself out there and speak about it because this has really helped me and I would be thrilled if it helped even only one person (although I have a feeling it will help a great deal more than one).

This week's video is on the voice in your head.

Here are some of my favorite quotes on the subject:

*Please note, I read this on my kindle, so I have location numbers in lieu of page numbers.

Location 229 True personal growth is about transcending the part of you that is not okay and needs protection.

Location 224 Reality is too real for most of us, so we temper it with the mind.

Location 184 Eventually you will see that the real cause of problems is not life itself. It’s the commotion the mind makes about life that really causes problems.

Location 257 You have to break the habit of thinking that the solution to your problems is to rearrange things outside. The only permanent solution to your problems is to go inside and let go of the part of you that seems to have so many problems with reality.

Location 294 You’ll be shocked by what you see. It just jumps from one subject to the next. The incessant chatter seems so neurotic that you won’t believe that it’s always been that way. But it is.

Location 881 You are living on a planet spinning around the middle of outer space, and you’re either worrying about your blemishes, the scratch on your new car, or the fact that you burped in public. It’s not healthy.

For my expanded thoughts on these quotes, check out this week's video. If you are unable to see the video above, click here, look in the sidebar of this blog, or visit my channel: www.youtube.com/TheDailyConnoisseur

If you feel intimidated by all of this, but you really do want to make a change in the way you think, I find that there is only one thing you need to do:

Acknowledge the voice in your head.

When you do this, you become aware of it. And awareness of the voice in the head is the first step toward awakening consciousness. Suddenly all of those unsettling of troublesome thoughts you have lose their power and over time will simply stop showing up.


I would love to know what you think about the voice in your head. Use the hashtag #dailyconnoisseur on your social media sites so we can all stay connected while discussing these life-changing topics, or simply leave me a comment below.

See you next week for one of my favorite concepts in the book: Burn & Release.

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