Marked by Music

Hey guys, Erika here, and today we’re talking music on The Fashionably Broke. Natalie asked me to take over this post because as you may or may not know, music is pretty much my boyfriend. We (music and I) have been in a relationship since my ear machines started working and he is always sparking new interests to keep us going. Earlier this month, Natalie and I were lucky enough to attend the one and only Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. This festival topped the charts by bringing together not only my favorite artists, but also my best friends from all over. It was a moment in my life, marked by music, that I will now never forget.

If you've been to any music festival or concert then you get how music can create those specific-detailed memories that stick with you forever. Anytime I hear the songs I saw live at Coachella, I can picture exactly what I was doing and how I felt at that moment. There’s really nothing else that can do that for me. Like in the Yuma tent, during Duke Dumont’s set, I can remember every detail from when he started playing “I Got U.” When I hear that song today, I can immediately picture that moment; From the goose bumps I got, to Natalie’s dance moves and my thoughts of “UGH, sucks for Brad [human boyfriend], he would be in the bathroom when this song comes on” (it’s a favorite of ours). Those particular moments are exactly what make music and attending music festivals so special to me. It’s truly a state of pure happiness, being surrounded by amazing music, bringing everyone together. There’s no place I would rather be!

Pre-Coachella, I made to sure do my research, expand my horizons, and learn about some of the artists I was unfamiliar with. For months (and I mean, months) leading up to the show, every time I got in my car, I turned on a "Coachella 2014" playlist from Spotify. I found an awesome one that listed a few songs from each artist that were on the lineup. I made sure to get a little taste of everyone. I highly recommend doing this to prepare for a big music festival, like Coachella. I added a bunch of new artists to my personal lineup, that I might not have even considered before. I found one of my new favorite DJ’s, Rudimental, and I made sure to get a front row spot at their show and even went to go see them perform again two days later at Sound Nightclub in LA. It was really the perfect ending to my music-filled weekend!

You can check out my Jungle House Spotify playlist below, it has all of my recent favorites! You can definitely expect to hear some Rudimental, Disclosure, and “I Got You.” You can also see more from our Coachella adventures here.

Disclosure: Compensation was provided by Spotify via Glam Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Spotify.

Nineties Baby

Topshop Top, Topshop Leggings, Topshop Shoes (all c/o Nordstrom Pentagon City), Erin Dana Fanny Pack c/o, ZeroUV Sunglasses c/o, She's Unique Rings

Erika was actually born in the nineties, can you believe that? The nineties was great for giving me a sister (aw!), Alanis Morissette's "Jagged Little Pill" album and grungy fashion. I love the nineties style Erika's outfit takes on here, from leggings to crop-tops, chunky heels and even a fanny pack. Like I always say, fashion is a circle, and the fact that this entire outfit is fresh off the racks prove it.

We shot this look before Coachella, but sadly didn't have the time to post it before we left. We had been Coachella shopping for weeks and finished off at Topshop at Nordstrom. The British are doing something right, don't you think? Then, just in time, only a few days before leaving for Cali, Erin Dana blew our minds with her chic, Spring '14 collection of fanny packs. She's really a genius in that she put two "packs" on one belt. One perfectly fitting your iPhone and the other your cash, ID and lipstick; All of the essentials. Leaving us hands-free and comfortably chic, Erin Dana, Topshop and Nordstrom were huge hits during our week of living the festival life.

Polish Play

Nail polish; So many options, so little time! It's like a hobby for me, trying out new colors. My nail color can even determine my mood, so much that it's hard for me to chose one a lot of the time. As a result, my new thing has been playing with different color combinations. Recently Sally Hansen asked me to try out their new Triple Shine collection. They sent me five, Spring hues to try and the first thing that came to my mind was how I could mix and match these gorgeous, bright colors. I came up with three, punchy color combinations, all inspired by things that came to mind when I think of Spring and Summer.

My favorite combination was Reef-Raf (Pink) and Dive In (Turquois). You can see above how I went about mixing the two by applying one color on my first three nails and another on the last two. Speaking of applying, the thicker, flat brush Sally Hansen has created might be the best thing I've seen all year. It made for such easily application, perfect for those of you who enjoy at-home mani's, like me. The polish painted on smoothly and even and is left looking so shiny that it looked almost wet after it dried. I seriously love it! See below for all three color combinations that I came up with. I hope that you give them a try, and if you do, be sure to use the hashtags #TripleShine or #TurnUpTheShine so we can check them out!

Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Refinery29 x Sally Hansen