The Versatile Blogger Award Recipient!

A very special thank you to the ever lovely Rola from Rola's Fountain of Youth for nominating Lola's Secret Beauty Blog for the Versatile Blogger Award! I am tremendously honored and humbled by this award!

If you are nominated, you’ve been awarded the Versatile Blogger Award- so here are the rules for award recipients:

The Rules
1) Nominate 15 fellow bloggers who you follow regularly (any duration of time) and link to their website.
2) Let them know that you have nominated them.
3) Share 7 random facts about yourself.
4) Thank the blogger(s) that nominated you and link to their blog(s) in your Award Post
5) Add the Versatile Blogger Award picture to your blog post 

First I must preface this by stating that all of my nominees are bloggers that I have been following and loving longer than I have been blogging- they have been constant sources of inspiration and wonderment, and it is in large part because of them that I started a beauty blog. It is for this reason that I want to publicly celebrate these extraordinary bloggers to whom I owe a tremendous debt of gratitude. I hope to one day be able to do for up-and-coming beauty bloggers what they have done for me!

I Nominate:
1) Beauty Info Zone  Not only do Marcia and Lisa review a diverse range of products exquisitely without fail, but they do so in an extraordinarily personable and approachable way. This is unquestionably one of the best beauty blogs out there. I must also publicly express my unmitigated devotion to Marcia as a friend and fellow beauty blogger. She has continuously watched after me, offered me sage advice, submitted my blog to the Beauty Blog Coalition for membership, featured my blog prominently on her blog, tagged me when my blog was still a huge "secret," to mention but a few of the gracious and generous things that she has done to help me along the way. 

2) Beauty Reductionista  I consistently experience pure joy reading this fantastic blog. First of all Liz’s photographs alone are stupendous artistic compositions that prove to be extraordinary visual delights. However, you soon learn that the real jewel is Liz herself- she is warm, honest, and always compelling. She has a very approachable style that has made her blog one of my top picks for a very long time.

3) Delicate Hummingbird  What a joy to behold! Not only is Delicate Hummingbird an extraordinarily gifted blogger whose focus is on high end and luxury niche products, but she is also a tremendously gifted artist. I hang on her every word- particularly when she waxes poetic about Hakuhodo and Rouge Bunny Rouge. This is beauty blog perfection incarnate.

4) Everyday Beauty As I mentioned in my nomination of Zuzu's blog for the Liebster Award (click here to read what I said about this extraordinary blog and blogger), Everyday Beauty is one of the most exquisite beauty blogs in the blogosphere. Her polished writing and photographic skills coupled with her nuanced grasp of what she sees, perceives, and then shares makes her a beauty blogging visionary with a very unique voice. Zuzu, like Marcia, has become a beloved friend. She has offered her experience and knowledge, featured me prominently in her blog, and generally been an extraordinary role-model as a beauty blogger.

5) Eyeliner on a Cat I just had to nominate Carrie for another award (click here to read what I said about this exceptionally talented perfume and beauty blogger) because her blog really is that special! She is clever, witty, funny, charming- well, and extraordinary. We connected immediately and became fast friends. She has amazing skills as a writer and has a special way of communicating to her readers that is at once personable and informative. She also has some magical skills up her sleeves because she was able to convince me to start paying attention to my woefully neglected Twitter account-- and that's saying something!

6) Front Row Beauty- Reika has an extraordinary eye and sense of style. Her photography is always so superb that she even makes drugstore brands look as though they came from a Rodeo Drive boutique! Her fashion and beauty hauls have all of her readers hanging on her every word, and her FOTD posts are simply to die for! All of her posts are so carefully thought out and presented that one is always left in a state of eager anticipation for her next installment. She is indeed a lovely woman with an extraordinary blog.

7) Getting Cheeky Jessica’s blog resonates with me in so many ways, and I must confess that I was hooked after my first visit to her “little corner of the internet.” That she is a devoted Francophile- is a huge plus, as I too, lived in Paris for a time.  Her reviews are always fantastic, and her photographs are breathtaking. She often photographs her makeup on top of loftier things like Raphael’s Three Graces, Homer’s Odyssey, or Diderot’s Le Neveu de Rameau, and to me this is pure magic! This is a very special blog.

8) London Makeup Girl I had been a devoted reader of Grace London’s blog long before I thought about starting a beauty blog of my own. She maintains a very nice balance between makeup and skincare reviews, and always presents her opinions in a refreshingly honest and approachable way. While she invariably creates lemmings with her fabulous reviews- she always remains so honest and sensible in her approach. If you are addicted to luxury niche brands, fantastic honest reviews, delightful pictures, and fantastic EOTD/FOTD posts- then welcome to beauty blog nirvana.

9) Modesty Brown Serious unmitigated fabulosity! Modesty Brown is no ordinary blog, and Jane is no ordinary blogger.  Experiencing Modesty Brown is like being invited on a private journey with this blog’s skillful writer/editor. You will go with her on vacation, experience her depotting adventures, cringe when another of her luxury lipsticks is the victim of a toddler face painting adventure, drool over her latest haul, and quickly scribble down the names of things from her stash that are new must-haves. However, she also writes pieces that force us to think about our habits as consumers, but also delights us with brilliant makeup combinations and gorgeous EOTD/FOTD features that I bookmark on a regular basis. 

10) My Beauty Bunny is one of my most trusted reads when I am looking for cruelty-free products and resources. Jen is a devoted animal lover who is able to dispel misinformation while educating her readers in an approachable friendly way. She is always honest and forthcoming, but never pontificates. She does not sugarcoat the treatment that research animals receive, but she also provides fresh insights and valuable information in an extraordinarily balanced way that makes the reader trust her without reservation. This blog has been one of my greatest and most rewarding discoveries. To say that Jen is a seasoned professional is an understatement of the highest order.

11) My Funny Valentine quickly became one of my favorite blogs after I first discovered it a few years ago. Jenny's blog covers a diverse range of products from drugstore brands to luxury brands, and she has a refreshingly approachable way of conveying her findings. She is warm and honest, and in her "What I'm Wearing This Week" videos she is charming, funny, and speaks to her viewers as thought they were old friends with whom she's skyping. Jenny's FOTD features are always fantastic- showcasing her cultivated skills with makeup selection and application. If My Funny Valentine isn't on your radar or blog roll- it really should be!

12) Perilously Pale is a blog that I have religiously followed since about the time that this fantastic blog launched. This fair-skinned stunner is one of the most gifted makeup artist/bloggers that I know. Her makeup artistry and sheer unmitigated creativity is simply exquisite, and her FOTD & EOTD posts will leave you drooling and scrambling to try to duplicate her looks. She has created so many lemmings in me that have translated to a far slimmer wallet and a much thicker credit card bill. Her taste is superb and she dazzles her reader with all of her unexpected and harmonious makeup combinations. She even makes drugstore brands appear to be luxury brands through her deft handing of her brushes.

13) Pink Sith is such a refreshing blog to read! Elvira is witty, funny, sarcastic, ironic, and- well AWESOME! I began reading her blog years ago, and not only was I captivated by her humor, which is often self-effacing, but I was also dazzled by her makeup choices and combinations. Her epic posts on "Blushes You Can't Have" and "Taupes You Can't Have " have on more than one occasion put me in a nearly psychotic frenzy trying to track down some limited edition item that I was convinced that I simply would die without! I have seriously mad love for this blog!

14) The Non-Blonde I have been reading Gaia's blog for many years, and to say that The Non-Blonde has always been one of my favorite blogs is an understatement of the highest order. First of all Gaia has amazing taste, and is an amazing resource for makeup brushes, perfume and luxury makeup. She is undoubtedly a highly cultivated and seasoned aficionado whom I trust immensely. If Gaia waxes poetic about something in her stash-- it's a sure fire hit- and is worth having. However, when she says something is a miss-- you know that there's no point in wasting your money. Sadly (for my wallet) her makeup and brush "loves" really resonate with me-- and there's no question that I have more makeup and brushes as a result of her reviews!! If you are unfamiliar with The Non-Blonde (which seems doubtful) then get acquainted!

15) Visionary Beauty This is simply one of the best blogs ever. I really love this blog so much that it’s difficult to find the words to express just how much I enjoy hanging out and reading her reviews and drooling over her stash. Replica has a very approachable and honest style, and she tempers the temptations that she offers with very truthful assessments. She always has great information and photos of the most magnificent luxury niche products as well as more mainstream luxury products. Her swatches are fantastic and drool-worthy, and I always study them assiduously before purchasing any of the products discussed. Beware: if you have a proclivity for Rouge Bunny Rouge visit this blog at your own peril- because you are sure to lose your mind when you see the extent of her stash. She is one of the bloggers most responsible for my RBR binges!!

Random facts about me (here were my responses when I was tagged by Marcia):

1) Purple has been my favorite color my entire life- I haven't strayed from it for a single day. Even my first bike was purple.

 2) While I have lived in Los Angeles for a long time, I was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area and still remain a product of the area in so many ways.

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View of San Francisco from Berkeley

View of LA at the Getty Center

View of LA from the Griffith Observatory

3) I started beauty blogging as a diversion from the rigors of academic research and writing.

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4) Lola is actually my cat's name- she always sleeps on my desk while I work- so I named the blog in her honor, and it became my blogging name as a result.

Lola (on the right) with her brother Milo. 

5) I am obsessed with Cartier watches, Marc Jacobs wallets, and Tom Ford glasses, and I have two of each (and have had them for many many years except the purple Marc Jacobs wallet that my husband gave me for my birthday last year).

6) Funny LA moments: A very handsome man stopped his car at the crosswalk so that I could cross the street- we smiled and I thanked him, but as I got closer I could see that it was Denzel Washington at which point I do believe that my smile became pretty goofy. I am almost never ever star struck, but I wasn't expecting it to be Denzel. The next situation was rather surreal: Aisha Tyler stopped her car in front of my house (I was on the front porch about to go in) and she told me that a coyote was just in my front yard and ran down my street (in broad daylight). We just looked at each other puzzled as the coyote continued trotting down the block. ONLY.  IN.  LA!

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7) I am a city girl- I love the sounds, sights and smells of a big city. I love the hustle and bustle. I love the visual spectacle of so many disparate things going on at once. To me, the chaos is beautiful.

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