A New Love -- Dell XPS 13 Laptop

For the past 3 years or so, I've been a Mac girl.  [Both the makeup and the electronics ;)] 

Well, I've always had an iPhone from the moment they came out, but about 3 years ago I purchased my first MacBook and I haven't looked back since. So you can imagine that I was extremely hesitant when I was recently contacted to review the new Dell XPS UltraBook. Would I even remember how to use the Windows operating system? Could I ever stop using my beloved MacBook?! 

I started to read more and more about the XPS and I was slowly won over. First of all,  it's sooooo thin and light. Plus some models have a 15 hour battery life. (Ones with a touchscreen have a battery life around 11 hours, but still come on that's amazing!) And with the Dell Power Companion, you get an additional 7 hours. That alone was reason enough for me to switch. I've said this in YouTube videos before, but I am always on the go. From my consulting work to being at my salon, I'm not usually sitting behind a desk all day long.  Plus I travel quite extensively throughout the year. So ease of portability is a big one for me. After reading all the reviews, I finally decided to accept the laptop and give it go. You all know, I never ever work with brands unless the products are things that I will actually use and can support. Another thing that really drew me in was the aesthetics. If you've been following me for a while now, you know that I love clean and simple lines. This laptop is so chic and sleek. The Dell XPS 13 is the smallest 13-inch laptop on the planet….it fits a 13.3-inch display in an 11-inch laptop. And the display is so beautiful because it has an infinity display (the technical term is the edge-to edge Corning® Gorilla Glass NBT™ infinity display) but basically it's rimless. And are you guys ready for this….it weights only 2.6 pounds! It's so thin and light! It is a high performance laptop with a 5th generation Intel processor. If you're like me, and not really sure what that means on a practical everyday level, let me tell you this: I've been playing around with it and it is FAST! 

The Dell XPS 13 comes in a variety of different models, varying from different amounts of memory, touch and non-touch screen, and lots of add-ons too. My friends at Dell and Intel, sent me the works! Seriously, I was amazed at the goodie package that came along with the laptop: a travel backpack, sleek carrying case, all kinds of adaptors and chargers and Microsoft Office (that was another huge plus!). I thought this was really cool too: it's considered one of the greenest laptops because it's made without materials like cadmium, lead, mercury and other crazy things that are horrible for the planet. It also won over 7 awards at CES 2015 (which I still have been to, but it's on my list!) I don't want to bore y'all with the technicalities. For me, it comes down to speed, size and performance. And from what I've seen so far, this Ultrabook has it all. 

I've decided to replace my MacBook with the Dell XPS Ultrabook for the next couple weeks. I'm so excited to see how this goes! But being the Mac girl that I am, the transition may not be seamless.  I know that I will, of course, love how thin it is (it's been said to be as good as or even better than the MacBook air!) Speaking of which, the Dell XPS has Quad HD+ infinity touch display with 5.7 million pixels which is over 4.4 million more than the MacBook Air 13 with HD+.  I am going to use the XPS for everything from blogging, to my actual work, to even watching a little Netflix. I am slightly concerned about switching back to a PC interface, but here's hoping that's just like riding a bike ;) I'll check back in with y'all at the end of the month with a report of how it went!

xoxo

 Buy your own Dell XPS | Read more about the Dell XPS Story  

Disclosure: I received the new Dell XPS 13 Ultrabook with 5th Generation Intel Core Processor to review, along with the accompanying accessories. All opinions are absolutely my own. Always.

#shamelesslysparkly

It's no secret I love big jewelry, statement necklaces in particular. I have a pretty fabulous collection but I was on the hunt for a colorful piece that I could wear into Spring and Summer. Y'all know how picky and seriously, I've been searching for a while. So you can imagine that it was true love when sweet Tweedie over at Shamelessly Sparkly sent me this colorful sparkler.

Check out some of my other wish list items over at Shamelessly Sparkly.

Does this necklace look familiar to anyone? ;) You'll love the price even more.

Definitely adding these tortoise + turquoise earrings to my jewelry collection. 

Love the color combo.

For me, the best part is the price point. I am a major bargain shopper and love when I get beauty, quality and affordability all in one place. Jewelry that is sturdy and substantial without spending a fortune. That's a win in my book.

I hope you'll check out the lovely ladies over at Shamelessly Sparkly. I truly believing in supporting small business owners and family-run ventures. Yay!

Big thanks to Tweedie for sending me the gorgeous necklace. 

A Skinny, Dirty Party!

All kinds of fun happening today! I'm such a lucky girl! 

I got the opportunity to partner with Skinny Cow ice cream to host a screening party for my friends 

in celebration of Dirty Dancing's 25th anniversary!

A great big thanks to Skinny Cow for fueling this celebration with lots of ice cream, to Baby & Johnny for the groovin, to my friends for being oh so fun and to Daily Buzz Style for bringing it all together! Here's a little peek at the night's festivities:

Peanut butter & mint ice cream sandwiches (which were delicious by the way!),
popcorn and pretty much every girl's all-time favorite movie. Such a fabulous night!

the best part of the whole movie!

someone who shall remain nameless really enjoyed that mint ice cream sandwich!

the whole night was an absolute blast!

And because the week wouldn't be complete without a little Friday's Fancies dreamin'

I created the modern day version of two of Baby's most loved outfits from the movie

{white tie top // jeans shorts // green bag // gold flats}

{pink dress // studded heels // white bag :: similar}

happy weekend dears!

xx

As part of the DailyBuzz Style Community, 

I received a stipend, DVD, and coupons for free Skinny Cow® product.

All opinions are 100% my own.  Seriously, that was darn good ice cream!

{sponsor love} the European site, Very.com

Have you all started your holiday shopping yet?  Well just in time, I'm so excited to introduce you to the European site, Very.com, which is launching in the US!  You all know by now (I hope!)  that I will never feature any brands here unless I love them, no exceptions.  I was really excited when their team approached me because I'm really loving this site!  They offer over 400 brands, including designer pieces and the best of British style, but the best part:  most of their items are so affordable!  They've also partnered with celebrity ambassadors such as Whitney Port from The Hills and The City fame.  We all know how stylish she is!  And, they'll be launching a street style blog featuring what's hot on the streets of London.

These are some of my favorite pieces from the site:

They feature tips for getting celeb style too:

The site is still being tweaked but you can shop now! Yay!
Very.com is offering Lili & Mae readers a special VIP discount of 20% 
to use on Black Friday/Cyber Monday.
Sign up in the box below to receive the code. 

Another Thanksgiving post coming your way tomorrow!


Happy Wednesday my dears,
xx


{ps}:
Who knew Pippa Middleton is called P. Middy?
Brilliant.


I was compensated for my partnership with Very.com
All opinions are 100% mine!  Please see my sponsorship policies below.