It’s with a sad and heavy heart that I announce that today is my last day as blogger for Hot Mama Daily.    Yes, I know, I know.. this comes as a shock to most of you, and I hate to be the bearer of bad news…

As I’m sure all my frequent readers have noticed, since the summer, my posting has been very, very sporatic.  This is because I returned to a full-time job a few months ago (boo-hoo!) and have been trying to keep up blogging, work-life, family-life, and extra-curricular-life (if that makes any sense! LOL!) and my decision to continue blogging on HMD is something I’ve been struggling with for weeks now…To blog?  Or not to blog?

So… with that said, I am hanging up my blogging hat here at Hot Mama Daily.  However, the good news is that b5media will keep Hot Mama Daily as a blog on the Beauty & Style Channel and will have another writer or 2 (who have not been announced yet) to take over writing duties starting tomorrow, October 1st 2008.

Thanks to b5media–who have been absolutely fantastic to me during my year and a half as HMD’s blogger (and have left the door open for me to come back whenever I want, which I love them for!  Thanks Kori!)

Thanks to Christina Jones for taking a chance on me, a new mommy who had very little blogging experience, and for allowing me to have a voice and be a part of thee best Channel on b5media!  Miss you much CJ!

Thanks to Deborah Ng, (who I consider to be my blogging mentor of-sorts–but she doesn’t know it–LOL!) and who allowed me to pester her time and time again with a million+5 questions as a blogging noob even before I joined b5media.  Thanks so much for your patience and kindness to me (a complete stranger at the time!) when I had no clue of what I was doing! Ha!

To all my lovely fellow b5media Beauty & Style Channel bloggers (Dexie - muah!),  you girls and guys ROCK!!!  I’m so proud to have been a part of such a wonderful team.  Keep up the great work!

And last but absolutely, definitely, not least, YOU, the reader!  Thank YOU!!!!   Whether you found this blog via a Google search by accident (yes, even you Rihanna and Halle Berry fanatics), whether it was from a friend, or whether you know me personally and just wanted to support another one of Pascalle’s crazy “ventures” (ha!), I thank you and appreciate you for reading, for checking back occasionally, for leaving a comment, and for showing love & support.

I’ve met so, so many great people and new friends from writing this blog, it’s been nothing but wonderful–so wonderful that I can’t even begin to express my gratitude by typing alone.

My goal when I first approached b5media with the Hot Mama Daily ‘concept’, was to write a blog for the new mother, and to offer advice on how a new mother can stay looking, well, hot and fashionable (Hot Mama, hello?), even after becoming a new mother.  I was tired of seeing the same maternity outfits, and even the boring post-partum fashion all over the place.  It always surprised me how people kind of expected me to become ’soccer-mom’-like and live in Mom-jeans/attire after giving birth to my son (not dissing the soccer moms, but you get my drift, right?)

With Hot Mama Daily, I wanted to write something light and fun, in my own voice and personality, where I could pass along tips and advice on what I thought was cute and ’stylish’ for expecting moms, brand new moms, and even veteran moms.  I even tried to make you guys laugh a bit along the way.  The idea was to write a beauty & style blog that was non-intimidating.   Most importantly, I wanted to show women how to re-create great fashionble looks for LESS and without looking like a fashion victim.

As it turned out, I was writing for the everyday woman–you and me, mother or not, young and young-at-heart *wink*.  The response was phenomenal!  In less than a year Hot Mama Daily grew in leaps and bounds and that was GREAT to see.  I’m a mushy and sentimental chick therefore the growth in readership and positive response my heart tremendously

In closing (if I could ever finish this thing–lol!), I want to say a heartfelt thanks to every last one of you.  And, I want to let you all know this isn’t the end of my blog experience.  You WILL see me around blogging again one of these days.  Count on it.

Feel free to e-mail me every once in a while to check in, or just to say hi, or… whatever!  pascalle7 (at) gmail (dot) com

Since I don’t believe in goodbyes I won’t say goodbye.  I’ll just say…”later…for now!”

Post from: Hot Mama Daily

Moms, how many times have you gotten dressed to go to work in the morning, given baby/kids their goodbye kisses and realize as your baby is hugging you, that your little one’s hands are full of sticky banana/applesauce/(add your own breakfast item)?

Or, how many times have you thought to yourself–while helping your cutie pie with that art project–that you’ll be extra careful and not mess up your clothes (because you’re the super vigilant multi-tasking Queen, right?) and wind up being WRONG?

Look, I don’t know about you, but this crap happens to me allll the time.  My clothes are always getting dirty courtesy of my little puddin’ pop and I don’t have the budget for brand new clothes every week.  Some of us actually have to wash and re-use our clothes (yeah, I”m looking at YOU Victoria Beckham) as part of daily life.

That said, I present you with…The Mommy Apron!

No boring muu-muu-looking apron here.

Here’s some more info on The Mommy Apron:

 ”The Mommy Apron™ is an art smock, a cobbler’s apron, a gardener’s apron, a utility apron, a chef’s apron, and a hostess apron all rolled into one!

What makes The Mommy Apron™ unique is the Nano-Tex treated denim. The cutting-edge technology allows the fabric to remain spill-resistant no matter how many times you wash it.

Design
The Mommy Apron™ is designed in trendy dark indigo denim and is accented with printed grosgrain ribbon and coordinating adjustable button fastener just below the left shoulder.”

Sounds brilliant.  Read more about it here!

(Thanks Stacey!)

All images courtesy of  Mommies In Mind Brands.™

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Image: courtesy of Consumer Reports

Per ShopSmart’s November 2008 issue:

“ShopSmart, from the publisher of Consumer Reports, checked out more than two dozen beauty sites to find the best ones, screening out sites with bad Better Business Bureau records, no contact information, poor return policies, or high shipping fees and ones where items were bundled (Amazon’s best cosmetic deals were in multipacks). Here are the results:

 

Best Overall Selection: Beauty.com

Shipping Free if you spend $49 or more.

Return policy 30 days on unopened products or, for certain items, if you don’t like the color. Returns cost $4.99 unless a product is damaged or incorrect or the color is wrong.

 

Great for Hard-to-Find Products: Beautyhabit.com

Shipping Free on orders of $100 or more; otherwise $5.95.

Return policy 14 days on most items. No returns on opened or used products.

 

Great for Trendy Brands: Beautyofasite.com

Shipping Free on orders over $75; otherwise $5.95 to $8.95.

Return policy 30 days. You pay for return shipping unless the product was damaged. All returns are for exchange or store credit only. There are no refunds or returns on color cosmetics.

 

Best Prices: Buymebeauty.com

Shipping Free on orders of $35 or more; $4.95 on orders of less than $35.

Return policy 30 days. Products must be unused and unopened, unless they are defective. You have to call or e-mail before returning products; you will also have to pay the costs of return shipping.

 

Great Return Policy: Cosmeticmall.com

Shipping $5.95 plus 93 cents per pound.

Return policy 30 days. You can return most products for any reason, even after they’re opened.

 

Great Drugstore Makeup Section: Drugstore.com

Shipping Free on your first nonprescription order of $25 or more; free on orders of $49 or more after that.

Return policy 30 days. Returns are free if a product is damaged, defective, or incorrect. Returns are free on certain products if you don’t like the color. Otherwise, products must be unopened and unused.

 

Great for Freebies: Sephora.com

Shipping Free on orders over $50; otherwise $5.95.

Return policy 60 days. Free return shipping. Store credit after 60 days.

 

Great for Organic Products: Skinbotanica.com

Shipping Free on orders over $49; otherwise $5.95.

Return policy 60 days.

 

Best Shipping Deal: Skin-One.com

Shipping Free.

Return policy 30 days. Product must be at least 75 percent full. You have to pay return shipping fees, and no returns are allowed of an opened product if you received a sample of it with your order.

 

Best Online Version of a Walk-In Store: Walgreens.com

Shipping Many items qualify for free shipping of purchases of $50 or more; otherwise $5.49 for 10 pounds or less.

Return policy 30 days.”

 Source

Post from: Hot Mama Daily

Congratulations to:

Hugette E., Lili, and Illissa H. on winning the Canadian RoC Skincare Giveway I posted about last week!

I will be contacting each of you to arrange sending your gift packages to you.

Congrats again!

Post from: Hot Mama Daily

Chloe ‘Brushed knee’ boot – $995.00 USD

Rihanna recently wore these on her flight from LAX to Paris.  Click here to see the pictures.

*Le sigh*

Anyhoo, remember the grey boots I got last November?

These are the Steve Madden ‘Tianna’ boots.  Funny enough I dug them out to wear them out of my ‘Fall’ bin in my basement today since the weather is has cooled down considerably where I live.  I got them for $69.99 USD last year at Zappos (they matched Famous Footwear’s price) but oddly enough, this season they are a bit MORE expensive on Famous’ website???  Odd.  I thought past season items were supposed to get cheaper, not more expensive.  I’m guessing it’s because it’s fall and # 2 grey boots are hot this season.  Go fig.

I like the Tianna boot, however, if you choose to get them be prepared to buy foot padding/cushions as the sole of the boot is uncomforably thin.  I have Dr. Scholl’s gel cushions *and* full foot cushions to alleviate foot pain.  It does a decent job.

If you’re not feeling the ‘Tianna’, here are some other styles:

Steve Madden ‘Bonanza’ – $89.00 USD

Oh! And how ’bout these over-the-knee beauties?

 Penny Loves Kenny ‘Gambit’ boot

Price is right on Amazon.com if you’re the right size (7, 7.5, 8 only) – $76.97 USD (!)

Chinese Laundry has two great styles, ‘Turbo’ and ‘Tahoe’(Turbo may have been around last season)

‘Turbo’ (shown in leather and suede) - $129.00 USD

‘Tahoe’ – $99.00 USD

Mossimo for Target ‘Kinsey’ -$29.99 USD

Aldo ‘Cassella’ – $130.00 CAD (Dk. grey only available on Aldo Canada’s website)

Restricted ‘Intellectual’ boot – $124.95 USD

Paired together with a chic black leather jacket–ooh wee!  You’ll be turning heads this fall baby!

Happy shopping ladies!

Post from: Hot Mama Daily

‘How can I do that, Pascalle?‘ You ask.  I’ll tell you how, with RoC Skincare products.  And just because I appreciate my Hot Mama Daily readers (and because you all have put up with my crappy lack of frequency in posting this as of late–ugh!  I know!  I’ve been terrible!), I want to make it up to you by offering a great RoC Skincare giveaway.  Don’t say I don’t love y’all *wink*!

I have five, yes 5,  prize packages containing the following items:

RoC Retinol Day Cream

RoC Lip Protector

RoC Self-Tanning

RoC Minesol Spray Suncreen with Retinol  (combines anti-aging with sun protection –for all year round protection)

Keep that summer glow you got this past summer and protect your skin all at the same time.  Sounds like a sweet deal to me…

So, how do you enter and/or what do you have to do?

To enter the giveaway, all you have to do is  type a comment below giving us your best “after the beach” skincare advice.  Nothing complicated.  For example, me personally, after hitting the beach I use aloe vera gel and moisturize like crazy all over.  See?  Easy!

For this contest, I will chose 5 comments randomly as winners.

Please, as with my other contests, I trust that my readers will not just type “hi” or spam me with multiple comments.  You all have been so great and I’ve never had contest issues in the past, so I’m sure I won’t now.  *Big smile*

Instead of rushing this contest I’m going to give more time than I usually do for you guys to enter.

Contest starts right now, Thursday, September 25th, 2008 and will end at 11:59pm EST Sunday, September 28th, 2008.  Winners will be announced the next morning, Monday, September 30th, 2008.

I will contact the winners via e-mail, therefore please be sure to leave a valid e-mail address in the email field only (not in the comment box!) so that I can reach you if you’ve won.  Rest assured, I will never publish, sell or distribute e-mail addresses to anyone and I am the only one that sees them.

*Important*: This contest is valid for residents of Canada only!

So there you have it.  Good luck!  You ready?  And… go!

(All images courtesy of RoC)

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They both look great.

Notice Posh’s new (well needed!) haircut.

What say you about Posh’s new haircut? Yea or Nay?

(Images courtesy of NEWSCOM)

Post from: Hot Mama Daily

I…just…love this woman’s style.

Here’s Halle and her partner/boyfriend (?) model Gabriel Aubry at Calvin Klein’s 40th Anniversary on the High Line in New York City (what up NYC!!!)

*Nods head in approval*  Yup.  Me likey.

p.s. And I know I’m late on this, but how cuuuuute is little Nahla?! (Not as cute as my 21 month old puddin’ pop, but I’m just sayin’ she’s pret-ty darn close….)

(All pics courtesy of NEWSCOM and PICAPP.)

Post from: Hot Mama Daily

I was really expecting some of the big acts from the 80s to show up and represent or at least have a some stars from today perform them in a bigger capacity (not on a side stage!)  BIG let down.  Or is it that I’m getting old?  *Le sigh*

Anyhoo, let’s just get right to the fashion:

Britney!

*Gives standing O* Ms. Spears 100% redeemed herself after last year’s VMA fiasco (time flies, doesn’t it?  Weren’t we just cringing talking about this performance?  What a difference a year makes…)

She played it a bit safe with two different silver dresses (not crazy about dress # 2 – reminds me of Wilma Flintstone), but either way, safe is so the way to go in Brit Brit’s case now-a-days.

Kudos to her dad.  She looks marvelous.  Well done.

Rihanna.  Meh.  While it’s a nice dress on the red carpet, I’m over her wearing corset dresses.   And the white heels?  Nope.

Her makeup, however?  F-L-A-W-L-E-S-S!

RiRi looked ama-ZING on stage (especially in her performance with T.I.)  Loved the little cropped biker jacket (that she wore with nothing underneath, I might add!)  You all know I’m a sucker for rocker chick fashion…

Speaking of cute cropped biker jackets, model Bar Refaeli  wore one with her dress and it looked grrrreat!

Solange (singer). FA-BU!  Love the shorter hair, love the color of her dress?  jacket? Whatever it is, it looks great on her.

And the heels?  Fiyah!!

Christina Aguilera.  Whoa. All I thought of during her performance was, “HOT MAMA!”  The Elvira/Catwoman makeup and ensemble worked for her (both on the red carpet and off).

Isn’t her son only like 8 months old?  Niiiice.

P!nk.  She effin’ ROCKS!  So I’ll forgive her for this, um, Beetlejuice-inspired number.

Ciara.  Hot.  I love the entire look from top to bottom.  You better work Cici!

Jordin Sparks – Adorable.

Keri Hilson. Nope.

Pussycat Dolls. (singer).  Meh. Coulda been better on all parts (just like the damn award show…)

(All images courtesy of PICAPP and NEWSCOM)

Post from: Hot Mama Daily

See, I’m going to a wedding in a few weeks, and I’ve been looking for a neutral/nude/taupe colored pump to wear with the dress I have.  I did my usual searches and landed on a clearance item on SteveMadden.com

SONIK pump (in Taupe patent, other colors available):

Very simple pump, the color is perfect for my dress and at $47.99 on clearance, hey, I couldn’t lose.  So I ordered it.  Case closed, right?  Or so I thought…

Then I decide to keep ‘browser window shopping’ (as I call it) and wanted to see what other shoes SM has in-store for Fall ‘08.  Why, oh why,  did I do that??

I stumbled upon this lovely speciman:

Steven by Steve Madden ‘DARIAA’ pump – $169.00 USD

$169.00?!? What!?!  For a Steve Madden pump?  But…but… *stutters* aren’t they lovely?  They come in other colors too:

All images courtesy of SteveMadden.com

Ok.  So here’s where I need you guys:   I don’t want to (pre)order them.  I really, um, don’t.  Please give me some reasons as to why I shouldn’t (besides the price)… I really need convincing b/c my heart is weak and the shoes are calling me…

Help a sistah out!   Pleeeease!!

Post from: Hot Mama Daily