Fabulous Fashion Find: Bagadocious Bags (Promo Code Included)

So how annoying is it when you go to your closet and you are looking for a particular handbag but can't locate it quick enough because you don't know which dustbag it's in?  I know that I have several dustbags for my Kate Spade and Brahmin handbags but I have to look through each one to find the handbag that I want when I want it.

Well, there's a cure for that and it's called Bagadocious.  With Bagadocious, all you have to do is choose the type of dust bag that you want and it can be used for your handbags, clutches, shades, shoes or other accessories.  Upload a picture of whatever item you need a dustbag for and VOILA!  You have a quality made dustbag with a picture of what's inside so that you can cut down on how much time you spend in your closet looking for certain items.

I feel like I hit a gold mine.  Check out the Bagadocious handbags I made below.   For the first 5 followers to leave a comment on this post with their email address, I will email you a PROMO code to receive 50% off of a custom-made Bagadocious dustbag!  These make for perfect gift items as well!

Bagadocious handbag dustbag covers...you even get to choose the outside trim color!

Sunglasses Bagadocious covers--a great way to protect your sunglasses if you misplace your case.

Bagadocious bags for shoes.

The Eat Clean (with a little bit of dirty) 21+ day Challenge

*WARNING---YOU WILL SLIM DOWN AND POSSIBLY LOSE WHATEVER BOOTY, BOOBS AND OTHER CURVINESS YOU ONCE HAD* (Disclaimer: I lost some of these because I did not exercise while on this eating plan...now back to your regularly scheduled blog-reading...)

So there's this whole "Eat Clean - Train Dirty" movement going on.  You see it everywhere.. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram...everywhere! I'm not really into working out or training per se.....so I just decided to "eat clean" before I went on my vacation to Hawaii. I left off the "train dirty" part...if I'm going to do a so-called lifestyle change...I have to take it one step at a time.  Eating right AND working out together would have been a little too much for me.  So...I started on my eat clean journey about 25 days out from the day that I was leaving for Hawaii.  I wanted to give myself plenty of time to cheat and then start over again. haha

So I adapted this grocery list from a woman I follow on Instagram by the name of @Mankofit.  She is absolutely so amazing and an inspiration. I was also inspired by a friend of mine, Keya @kmg_fitness on Instagram.  She set her mind to transforming her body and in 6 months she is so lean, with abs and doing body-building competitions. AMAZING! For her "eat clean" rituals, she used the same ingredients as Mankofit and helped me to come up with different ways to prepare my food...but to be super healthy.

So here's the grocery list I followed taken from Mankofit's "Eat Clean Train Dirty" 30-day Challenge (if you can't read the list, please contact me and I will email it to you):

      

So I went to the store and picked up the ingredients...not really knowing what was in store for me or just how difficult this may or may not be.

(Kinda blurry but you get the idea...)

I did a prayer to the good Lord above that I make it through this challenge and not let my inner fatkid take over.  Here are week one pics.  So I am very critical of myself.  In doing this challenge, all I wanted to do was flatten my lower tummy and feel great in my bathing suit.

WEEK 1:

Team "No-Camel Toe" haha / You can tell I'm a fashion blogger too...look at all the shoes on the back of my doors...the makeup brushes on my counter so that my face stays BEAT...but not in this pic obviously! Oh and the gold Michael Kors phone case...love!

The side view...the lower pooch has got to go!  And I'm not delirious...it's really there. I wanted more definition and to burn the fat/jelly.

Ok, so the first thing to this challenge is prepping your meals.  The last thing you want to do is bust out pots and pans all week.  I'm a full-time attorney and part-time blogging and attending Dallas social events...so Leah does not have time for that! I choose to prep my meals on Sunday while I'm watching crap reality TV and sipping on a glass of wine.  And if you're not on Pinterest...sign up now!!!  The majority of my crockpot chicken recipes came off of Pinterest and kept me from getting bored with what I was eating everyday.  If you don't have Pinterest and want some of my favorite recipes, contact me and I will email them to you.

I would suggest buying tons of tupperware.  This was only me stacking my lunches in the fridge after I prepped them.

BREAKFAST:

So I am in LOVE with the way the Mankofit outlined what to eat for breakfast...especially where the fruits are concerned.  She's very specific in that you can only consume the blueberries, grapefruit and strawberries in the morning.  DO NOT DEVIATE FROM THIS!  I noticed that after a week of following this...that my metabolism was through the roof!!!  I was eating constantly throughout the day.  I definitely credit this to the way that Mankofit tells you specifically what and when to eat certain items on the grocery list. (Grocery List is pictured above) 

One of my faves...oatmeal with sliced strawberries, sweetened with splenda.

For work throughout the week, it was easier for me to bring strawberries and blueberries for breakfast.  After a week my palette was cleansed of artificial sugars and these berries were VERY sweet to my taste-buds.  If you're a heavy sugar eater, it may take a week or so to entirely taste the true and natural sugars.

CHEATING DURING WEEK 1:

SO....during week 1, I cheated twice...I couldn't help it.  My friends called up and were like, "Hey girl, let's catch up"...and that was that.  But even still...all this to prove that even if you fall off track, you can STILL REACH YOUR GOAL!

WEEK 2:

 LUNCH AND DINNER MEALS:

 Ok people...so you have to get REAL creative with the grocery list..but it is totally doable.  I love fish...so most of my meals were pan-seared fish with seasonings and as far as my sides...I just had to create dishes to avoid getting bored.  This one is an egg-white scramble that I created with diced tomatoes, sliced avocados...all on a bed of sauteed spinach. #nomnomnom

 More pan-seared tilapia with brown rice.  For the brown rice, I boil the rice in a mixture of water and chicken broth to create more flavor..top with your favorite seasoning.  Sides of sliced tomatoes, avocado and more sauteed spinach.  Just call me pop-eye...I can eat spinach EVERYDAY!

 Baked lemon-peppered tilapia on a bed of lettuce, tomatoes, avocado, peppers and onions.

So this is one of my absolute FAVORITE dishes to make.  You can use either canned tuna or salmon for this.  It's so healthy and tasty.  Be sure to add some seasoning into it to create flavor.  A big thanks to my girl Keya @kmg_fitness for this recipe.  Hands down my favorite! (Here's my advice to lightly salt your dishes and don't go crazy.  The point is to slim down and not bloat due to excess salt consumption...ok???)

Sigh....and then I cheated again....it's hard to contain the inner fatkid.

CHEATING DURING WEEK 2:

I ate the whole thing and it was EVERYTHING!  Garlic, shrimp and chorizo pizza from Del Frisco's Grille.  BOOM!

WEEK 3:

So once week 3 arrived, I was actually liking the new eating habits I had acquired.  I wasn't really craving the carbs, fast foods, etc. that I was eating before.  I was making healthier choices if I had to go out to eat (except for the few cheat meals) but even still for something that started out as a "challenge" or "diet" was becoming a lifestyle change.  It takes 21 days to form a habit right?

For me...I noticed a thinner stomach, flattened lower stomach and a more defined waistline.  The muffin top was burning itself away. haha  But...due to no exercise...my booty was disappearing. Oh well!  Deal with it!

CHEATING DURING WEEK 3:

One last cheat before Hawaii....please!!!!! Come to mama. #nomnomnom

Bo-Bo China...only some of the best Chinese food in Dallas and on this side of the Mississippi! haha

HAWAII BIKINI BOD....GET IT GIRRRRLLLLL!  THANKS MANKOFIT AND KEYA!!!!! TEAM NO FILTER!

Hello Kauai tan lines!!!!!

POST 21-DAY CHALLENGE:

Even after the challenge, I still continue to eat off of the grocery list.  It was easy, doable and I didn't feel like I was depriving myself...clearly.  I've had several people ask me how I lost weight and I've heard comments "You're tiny!"  Not that that's a good thing...I'm 5'11...don't want to be tiny but I do want to be healthy.  Even after this challenge, my metabolism is still high and I continue to slim down.

Sigh...the booty is gone but it was well worth it!  GO GIRL!  I totally forgot to tell you guys that I DID NOT stop drinking coffee this entire challenge.  For those that know me...that WAS NOT an option. (See my Starbucks post paying homage to the Pumpkin Spice Latte.)

OK....so one last thing before I bounce.  This IS a Christian blog...so in trying to tie in all of life's lessons to how God wants us to live....I really feel like this experience taught me about how often we can fall short or backslide...but you just have to get up, NOT GET DOWN OR HARD ON YOURSELF, and keep moving forward.  Sometimes that means starting all over again, re-gaining focus...but you WILL reach your goal if you are persistent and focus on progression.  

Learn to forgive yourself and God will be there through the rest.  In life, we do things we're not proud of...or there's something that we need help with.  Instead of focusing on the negative or how often you keep giving into that "thing" (whatever it is), look ahead and try, try again! I cheated more times than this blog post actually shows...but I didn't beat myself up about it.  I just told myself, "Hey Leah...tomorrow's a new day and you can start over again."  That's what got me through this challenge...and that's what will get me through with life.  I feel like this is the type of life that God wants us to lead...forgiveness of ourselves, grace, redemption and restoration--principles to live by.

Single Ladies Inspiration - Waiting for Greatness

I'm actually super excited to write this blog post...migraine and all.  Right now I'm propped up on my couch, with Hollywood Exes playing in the background on my TV with a fresh mug of my favorite Starbucks Tazo chai tea. All in all, I really felt like this was so important to write because so many women settle for the wrong man...thinking that God has forgotten about them, or maybe that it's "taking too long" for them to get settled down as they look around and see their friends getting hitched and starting a family one by one.

Anyways, I was recently given the assignment for a website that I write for, Believe.com, to write a review on the book Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers. They only gave me 5 days to read the book and to write the review!  I was completely freaked out and pissed...because for one, I have a full-time job and two, I just don't have the time to read as much as I used to...for a 5 day turn around!  So, I picked the book up from Barnes and Nobles only to discover that the book was approximately 450+ pages long! *GROAN!*

Low and behold....I was blessed BEYOND MEASURE by reading this book and finished it in 2 days. I literally could not put the book down.

As a 30 year old Christian single woman, it can be easy sometimes to fall victim to society's pressures of "You're supposed to be married and have children by this age...." and yada yada yada.  I've been single for 2 years now and I'm like every other single woman out there that wants to love and be loved.  BUT...in my quest for a God-fearing Christian man, I'm not settling and definitely not desperate. I sometimes wonder "Is there really someone out there for me?  Is there really a guy out there with the same values as me? Does a man who loves God with all of his heart really exist? When will God deliver me my husband?"

Well after reading this book, I am so encouraged that just as God pursues us, so will my husband-to-be.  This book re-tells the bible story of Gomer and Hosea.  In the book, Gomer is likened to Angel, a prostitute who has been through many challenges in life and who feels unworthy of any man's love. She's only used to men wanting her for that one thing and is hardened to men because of that.  Hosea is Michael Hosea in the book...a man who looked at Angel walking in the street one time, and knew that she was his wife. He was a Christian man; well known and respected in the community but risked it all...to pursue a prostitute who God put on his heart as his wife.

After catching just a glimpse of Angel, Michael pursued and pursued Angel...knowing that this is the woman that God wanted him to marry.  Many times Angel strayed away but he loved her nonetheless, praying to God that she will seek after Him.  Angel wasn't perfect...she was known in town as the best prostitute on the block...but Michael loved her through all of her imperfections and led her spiritually to God.

~He who finds a wife, finds what is good and receives favor from the Lord. Proverbs 18:22~

There are many lessons in this book--self-forgiveness, redemption, God's pursuit after us, restoration.  But the theme of what it truly means as a woman to have a man of God love us with all of his heart--to cherish us and pursue us, to pray with us...to be there for us when we are weak and to lift us up spiritually was very comforting.

Could it be that I'm a hopeless romantic just entangled in a well-written love story?  Nah!  When it comes to relationships, I just always leave the outcome up to God...but reading this book at the most inopportune time and as my first assignment for Believe.com was not a coincidence.  God was speaking to me and reassuring me that he's got this one in the bag.

One of my senior leaders at church told me: "Hey Leah, just as you are preparing yourself for your husband...just know that somewhere...your husband is doing the same for you."

So if you're single...or maybe not single, just in a tough area in your current relationship...you're just wondering whether there really is a man out there for you.  One who's on fire for God, who goes to church and worships God for real and not for show...one who will look at you like the queen that you are...then definitely read this book.  It will have you encouraged and comforted in knowing that your patience in waiting is not in vain--it's all a part of God's plan.

Pic taken in Lihu'e, Kauai, Hawaii...I was really just overtaken by how beautiful everything was and how fortunate I was to be there

~Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain; but a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised. Proverbs 31: 30~

Can I Act "Hollywood" Now? I'm on Vogue.com!

Proverbs 29:23 - A man's pride will bring him low, But the humble in spirit will retain honor.

So everyday when I wake up or even when I'm in my car I always pray to God that I continue to stay humble, to stay grounded.  It's hard when I'm getting boxes and boxes of fashion and beauty products sent to me everyday or this comped and that comped to not get full of myself.  When I think about the blood, sweat and tears I have put into fashion for the last 4 years, it's hard not to want to take all of the credit and think that I've gotten here on my own.  But as I continue to reflect on the verse above and at the end of the day I circle back to the thought that everything I do, everything I am is all for His glory.

Today was a big feat for us (me and God).  I was featured on Vogue.com.  I had a great shoot with an amazing photographer, Thomas Garza displaying Fall looks.  To see my blog name "Beauty 4 Ashes" on Vogue.com literally just made me pause.  I want people to question what it means...I want people to come to my blog out of curiosity...whatever it takes to redirect people to Him.

With all of my personal goals with fashion and with all of the distractions of getting invites to this show or that show, so and so put you on their VIP list or here's a bag full of luxury items just cause...I want to let all my friends and family members know not to have any worries.  Leah's not going to go and get "Hollywood" anytime soon. My purpose through HIM is much bigger than all of this.

But.....if someone wants to put me at the Chef's table feeding me and my "plus one" a five-course meal while I sit in my Jimmy Choos and sip Veuve Clicquot, I won't complain! haha (Just kidding...kind of)

Vogue.com Clarks Fall Shoes Promo 9.17.2013 (Best. Day. Ever) / Photography by Thomas Garza, Make-up By Melanie Ann

My newest obsession: Hardware Clutches by Mel C.

It's high into Dallas fashion season right now and it seems like there are at least 4 or 5 events per week. Every event requires a different outfit and the probability of getting photographed is high.  I'll admit that my collection of clutches are few and I end up recycling between the same 2 or 3 bags.  It's one of those things where I tell myself to buy more clutches for the evening events and I just end up buying more shoes or jewelry. Anyways, I was scrolling through Instagram when one of the bloggers I follow posted a clutch by Mel C.-- From that moment on I was hooked!

Chevron and hot pink mini clutch by Hardware Clutches by Mel C. - $30.00

I purchased this mini clutch several days ago and I can't wait for it to get here.  According to Melissa, the creator of Hardware Clutches, she makes all of her clutches by hand and at times only one of each.  The prices are super affordable and I get extremely happy that I don't have to worry about seeing anyone else in Dallas carrying the same clutch as me.

Browse through her site today...her clutches are incredible!  

xoxo ~ Leah

Starbucks Tres Chic

My name is Leah....and I'm a coffee addict.  Specifically a Starbucks addict.  I would rather drive my financial advisor crazy by shelling out $100+ to Starbucks a month than to put that towards my credit cards (did I just admit that?). Let's face it...coffee brightens my day...coffee breathes life (literally) into me. I found this on instagram and it is so me.

Anyways, back to Starbucks.  So my friends think I am completely insane when it comes to my Starbucks addiction.  I literally light up like the fourth of July when two things happen...when it's pumpkin spice latte season and when the red holiday Starbucks coffee cups start popping up.  Something about it just makes me giddy.  

Anyways, so life has been so crazy that I didn't realize that Fall was approaching so soon...so I definitely wasn't expecting to see Pumpkin Spice Lattes so soon!  So apparently it's the Pumpkin Spice Latte's 10-year anniversary. (hashtag PSL)  And...in celebration of that, Starbucks has started Pumpkin Spice latte season early...JOY!   AND....the Pumpkin Spice Latte ads from Starbucks are super chic and super fashionable. SCORE!  So high five to Starbucks for bringing me Fall bliss early (Fall technically doesn't start until 9/22/13) AND for making the new ads appeal to the fashionable eye.  

Photo Credit: Starbucks.com

Starbucks just makes the latte look more chic...more fashionable with these new ads.

Check out the #PSL new sleeves!!!!

Ok my ode to Starbucks is done.  Now go out and order a PSL...enjoy enough until the little red holiday cups start popping up. #PureBliss

My favorite fall collection, Nic +Zoe

It's completely rare that I will have favorites when it comes to the world of fashion because there is just so much to choose from but.....(shhhhh don't tell anyone), I have crowned a favorite for this fall.  Vogue Magazine granted me an exclusive look at fashion brand, Nic + Zoe's, fall/winter 2013 collection--before it hits stands in major magazines in September! I am head over heels with the multiple print patterns and styles from this collection.  All I can envision is pairing these looks with over the knee stiletto boots or booties.  But....I live in Texas, so boot season is somewhere far off in the distance right now. :(

I'm so excited to share this with you all. Take a look at some of my favorite styles and selections...don't be surprised if you see me sporting one of these in one of my next posts!

(Photo credit: Mario Sorrenti; Model: Anja Rubik)

For being a loyal follower, enjoy 30% off your first purchase from nicandzoe.com by using promo code VIPF0813. (Promo code only good for a limited time)

Fall's A'Comin'...so "Fall" in love with Clarks

So I was one of 25 bloggers chosen by Vogue to show how I would style the new Lida Sayer boots from Clark's Fall collection.  I received my boots as a gift from Vogue last week and chose my look below to show how I would style the boot.  Since I live in Texas, I mixed shorts with a short-sleeved sweater to make the outfit "Fall-inspired" but appropriate for Texas.  Since the boot had gold detailing on the buckle and towards the top of the boot, I really wanted to draw attention to these features which is another reason why I chose to wear shorts.  The neutral colors are a great balance for Fall along with my teal pop of color shown with my bangles.  For  more style inspiration with Clarks, check out the photos below! (All photos were taken by Thomas Garza and my make-up was done by Melanie Ann.  Sunnies by Kate Spade....Sweater, Belt and Shorts by Express)

My ad creation for the Clark's Fall shoe collection created through the Vogue Influencer's Network style statement tool, pretty cool huh?

Another ad I created with the Vogue Influencer Style Statement Tool!