I fixed my hair and put together an outfit!

Okay, so this one is a couple weeks old. But a couple of weeks ago, I had an awesome day....

I actually bought myself a new pair of shoes earlier that week (!!!) and then pulled out a pair of jeans I hadn't worn in forever, paired them with a different top, and tried a new hairstyle! Pictures:

"maiden braids" hairstyle...with a whole heck of a lot of bobby pins and an accidental "bald spot". eh, you can't win em all, and it still looked pretty good! It also kept my hair completely out of the way, all day long. That's pretty impressive.
I kinda sorta followed what they tell you do do here, except not really, because my hair is down to my hips and takes FOREVER to braid. Also, it's fine and flat. So multiple braids = teeny tiny and weird looking:
http://www.abeautifulmess.com/2011/03/how-to-style-maiden-braids-.html

my nails mathced my pants! unintentional :P I'm pretty sure that polish was totally chipped and peeling and this was the last day I wore it.

better shot of the shoes...still not great but trust me, they're cute!

This is a big improvement over my jeans + oversized t-shirt + bun combo I'm sporting most days. Haha.

Make up tip

I read this article the other day. It was talking all about "ovulating the face." This new make up trend. 

Which is something I need desperately with my round face. 

It talked about a few items that most people don't mention. 

One of those being that the point of ovulating your makeup is to draw out the high lights of your face. 

So I tried to of the tricks this last week to see if would make a difference. I used a simple shiner/highlight bar on my upper lip and at the corners of my eyes. 

Laugh away at these goofy pictures but honestly! It worked, Kade even mentioned, did you change your makeup? 

So the goal is to pick to areas that you like on your face. Then research ways to bring the slightest attention to them. And try that with ovulation make up style. 

Good luck!

Hair and makeup

So this week, following suit with my Navy blue..... I tried this hair drying technic that was a total flop. 

I am constantly trying to put a little bit of volume in my hair. I have none, like dries as straight as paper level of no volume. So I read that not using conditioner would not weigh my hair down and thus achieve more volume.... Ehhhhhhh ( think buzzer sound) Massive frizzy fail. So I proceeded to wet it down and try and keep the fly always to a minimum... Until I got to the doctors office and well that turned out like a balloon loves static friction story! Until tomorrow!

Navy blue

So this week I chose navy blue. I have a ton of it and decided I need to switch it all up, go through some of it, eliminate some stuff and fix up others. So here is my outfit today! 

Project start

As with every Good project, there is that overwhelming jump to get into to it. The one that makes us put off said project until you don't want to do it anymore, or something breaks and it becomes a have to instead of want to. This happens to be my closet.

I have read a really great article. The main focus of this article are "Wardrobe builders" Creating a  flawless closet that only needs a couple additions and a few replacements.

I attached a couple pictures of the article for you.

They claim that starting with an organized completely cleaned out closet is the only way to start.
So with that here are the requirements, they all have.

• Give your self two hours or three.
• Make sure your bedroom is clean. Bed made, and all your laundry is done and put away.
• Put on your make-up and do your hair.
• Have a full length mirror
• put on a neutral outfit.

• Be sure to take everything out
• Have bins and baskets on hand for organizing( I like the clear ones for purses and shoes)
• Have a plan for organizing scheme
  Now take a good long look. What do you have? Are you an all black person? 
  
  

• Now that you know exactly what's left, get inspired. Start looking for outfit ideas to help you utilize what is in your closet.
• The picture below gives you a few ideas of where to look

• Shop for the replacement you need
• Shop for the things you figured out you actually need.

Tomorrow, I am attacking my closet. Wish me luck! And I hope your cleaning out goes well! 

Aloha!

So, I can't seem to add a bio to the "people" page up at the top, so I figured I'd write a whole entire post about myself instead because I am just that vain.

Just kidding about the vain part....but you really are getting an entire post. ;)

Hi! My name is Rachel! Hayley and I met by chance at a random YSA dance while she was visiting her grandparents almost three years ago...it was quite a memorable experience. We've never managed to live in the same geographic location, but we've kept in touch. We got engaged and married around the same time and my hubs and I were even able to make it to her wedding reception [which was gorgeous and so much fun]! Someday, when the world is perfect and all of my favorite people can live in my neighborhood, she will be there.

...so that is kind of how I came to be involved with this project. Because Hayley is awesome, and blogged about her wardrobe makeover at the exact same time that I was going through my own mini-wardrobe crisis.

You see, I birthed this baby about six months ago. Her name is Daisy and she is a hoot and I love her. Being a Mom is my most favorite job that I have ever had. There's just one problem...

dress/onesie: Carter's, cardigan and scarf-bib: H&M

She dresses better than I do [most days].
And I am the one putting together her wardrobe!

You think that I'd care as much about myself as I do my daughter. I mean, I fix her hair on the daily and she hardly has any, but my waist-length hair gets brushed once every other day if it's lucky [also it stays in a bun 90% of the time...still haven't figured out how long-haired moms do it].

her signature 'do

At first my issues were fitting clothing to my changing body. Pregnancy gave me a solid 65lb weight gain [at least, and all to the thighs], plus about five additional bra sizes [on top of an already D+ size pre-pregnancy]. I'm lucky to be able to squeeze back into my old jeans again, but my body is definitely not the same, and shirts are even more difficult to fit than they were before because some of those extra cup sizes have yet to disappear.

Another issue I have, is that I am so. dang. thrifty. Or cheap. However you'd like to say it. Point is, I HATE spending money on clothes, and feel really bad about it unless it is a necessity. I'm working on it.

Also, I have ideas about what style I'd like to have [retro, vintage inspired, and funky because I'm all about loud colors and crazy patterns], but I am so hesitant to actually buy pieces that will emphasize that aesthetic. I usually go for whatever is on sale, even if I don't like it so much. Did I mention that I'm cheap??? Luckily my hubs is awesome and tells me to buy things for myself. Haha.

ANYWAY. I am a big fan of re-mixing my wardrobe and get by on that pretty well for now, and while I've been awful at actually doing the project days so far, it's at least got me thinking and TRYING to put myself together each morning! Hopefully I'll have some interesting posts soon.

For now, I'll leave you with my most recent success: I wore red lipstick that had been sitting neglected in my makeup bag for, I don't know, 2+ years or so!

Revlon Just Bitten lip stain in...I can't remember the name. but I love the stain. it doesn't come off!

Correction: I wore it TWICE. But only took pictures once [AKA this one crappy cell phone photo]

It was fun, and a welcome change to my usual routine! I'm thinking about collecting fun and funky lipsticks. From the clearance bins, of course ;)