I’m not going to lie to you. I missed the sample choice window for the July 2016 Birchbox.
And, it may come as no surprise that I really wanted that month’s feature box. So, honestly, no matter what I got, I expected to be at least somewhat disappointed.
Really, the only let down was the box. It wasn’t the pretty patterned box for the month, but a plainer one. The samples were actually pretty decent.
I haven’t used them yet. But, I’m pretty confident that I will.
Plus, it’s just a short walk away from Boston Public Garden. Which is the perfect place to brush up on my photography skills.
My obsession with Jo Totes basically started the second I learned to shoot in manual. I mean, a purse that doubles as a camera bag? Genius.
But since I already had a camera bag. And more than my fair share of purses, I showed restraint. Then I found out about the Bellbrook Backpack and lost it!
I’ve never really been a back pack person. But, after one too many times of bringing my rather bulky messenger style camera bag on the Red Line, I knew something had to be done.
What I love about this backpack is that it’s big enough to carry what I need for a day shooting photos around Boston. There are compartments for everything. It holds what I need, without the unnecessary bulk. And it has easy access side pockets. If you’re looking for a multi-purposeful camera bag, then you seriously need this!
Each month myself and four other boss blogger babes have been styling the same piece of clothing and since we all look and think differently from each other (hair, religion, location, skin, size, height, style…all of the above), you’ll get five totally different looks. That means you’ll get to see what I style, on other body types so you can find something that is best for you!
While Kaylynn was pregnant, she did a series on her blog, Among the Young, where she would wear non-maternity clothes. Even when she was very much so ready to pop, she looked absolutely fabulous!
Well, this is kind of like the opposite of that.
PinkBlush carries both non-maternity and maternity clothing for women. However, Deidre, Kaylynn, Jacque, Lauryn and I each styled this royal blue floral short sleeve maternity dress. Before you get any ideas, this is NOT a pregnancy announcement. I honestly wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about wearing a dress like this. But then, I got more compliments while taking photos for this blog post than any other outfit! Random strangers would pass by and say how beautiful it was.
It also didn’t hurt that it is super comfortable and had pockets. Because those are both very important details.
While white accessories go really well, the next time I wear my PinkBlush maternity dress, ankle boots will probably be involved.
Georgina of A Noted Life is someone I consider to be one of my blogger besties (whether she agrees with me on that, or not). She and Tiffany of Boston Foodies hosted a Yumi Kim shopping event at Shake the Tree in Boston’s North End. And, when I say that bloggers sure know how to put on a fun event, I mean it with every ounce that’s in me.
The food was phenomenal. And local. There was everything from Neptune Oyster Bar oysters, to the best cannoli in North End from Bacco (of which I had far too many).
To that, add a handful of my favorite Boston bloggers, flavorful sips, and the prettiest floral dress EVER.
I’m wearing the Jayne Silk Dress, and I could just kick myself for not buying it that night! It was so comfortable and the color flattered me far better than I imagined it would. Regan of Venture Travelist helped me decide which one to try on. She really knows her stuff. Even though I wasn’t at my best, I felt absolutely gorgeous.
Lucky for me, Yumi Kim is also available on Rent the Runway. Although, I will probably end up back at Shake the Tree very soon!
For the June 2016 Birchbox the sample choice was between the different shades of the new and improved Benefit Cosmetics Gimme Brow. I knew I loved the original, so naturally I wanted to get my hand on this updated one. It was basically a no-brainer.
I don’t know if it’s just me, but I didn’t like the Gimme Brow nearly as much as I remembered. I’ve used it from time to time, but my current favorite is actually NYX brow mascara.
Finding clean beauty products to use in lieu of other more toxic ones can be scary. Scary enough to make you want to just not. But, Follain makes buying healthier makeup easy.
They have really helped me.
After attending a summer beach day ready makeup event at their Beacon Hill location, I decided I wanted to also do a better job of sharing some of my favorite Follain finds with all of you!
I’d only heard of Farmaesthetics because I’d received a sample in the swag bag from attending the Lady Project Summit. I didn’t think anything of it, until I’d used the Herbal Hydration Complex mask a few times. Not sure where to get it when I ran out. Then I saw it at Follain.
I also sampled the lavender lotion, which can be used for body and face. The description on the website says that they’d probably bathe in it if they could.
I can’t believe that it’s been over a year since I started sharing my monthly loves! Even more so, I can’t believe I debating not doing them anymore. I really like sharing five of my favorite finds each month, hope you like them too!
As painfully aware as I am that it is now August, like I said I was going to stop doing these monthly loves posts. But, after a lot of thought, I decided to not only continue them, but to go back and start from where I left off. Plus, I’ve given them a new look!
My May 2016 loves are a bunch of little lifesavers. Legitimately. I don’t know what I’d do without them.
Local gems are precious to me in a way that I struggle explaining. Supporting my local girl gang is HUGE to me. So when I discovered Rayne Home Decor while I was visiting my family in Connecticut, I stocked up on their candles. My favorite of their scents is Sicilian Gardens. I also really love their Adam & Eve. I’ve shared them on Instagram before, but I’ve been using them like crazy. So much so, that I’m starting to run low and need to restock!
SPF is something that I get is important, but often don’t think too much about. I only got it because I needed it to use with the Clinique Dark Spot Corrector, but then something happened (blog post about it and what was done to fix it is in the works!) and now I make sure to wear it daily. Without fail. I found an enriching facial moisturizer at Trader Joe’s that contains SPF. It’s so great, I keep it in my makeup bag so I don’t ever forget to put it on.
I haven’t actually gotten to the point where I have the energy to apply faux lashes every day. But, I do wear them a lot. My obsession with Ardell’s demi wispies is undeniable. I’ve found dupes that I like, but always end up going back to Ardell. At a random trip to the drugstore, to get who can even remember what, there was a buy one get one sale and I picked up two packs of their cluster wispies. I never imagined I could love any style lash as much as the demi wispies, but I SO do!
A while back, I was gifted some products from A.C. Moore. One of the products was Hollywood Fashion Tape. I’d heard of it, but never used it. Until I really needed it for a dress. Remembering that I had it was such good fortune, I wouldn’t have been able to wear the dress (unless I wanted a majorly inappropriate nip slip) otherwise.
Every so often, there’s a product I sample that I have to get. When I have Birchbox points, even better. Wilma Schumann eye pads surprised me. I didn’t expect to make them a reoccurring part of my self care routine. But stuff happens…
When Brass Clothing reached out to their customers for real models, I wasn’t going to apply.
Even though I really wanted to. I just didn’t think that I was what they’d had in mind. But as a huge fan of quality local goods, I felt that I owed it to myself to at the very least take a chance.
I don’t think I’m enough of a minimalist (more like the epitome of the opposite…) to have a capsule wardrobe. But, I love versatile pieces enough to want to add plenty of Brass to my closet. The three pieces that I own are not the only ones I’ve had my eye on.
This dress isn’t one that I modeled for their website. I actually found it on their Last Change Room page. However, they did recently restock a very similar style (and in three different colors)!
There are some days that getting up and starting my day is hard.
Those days are the days I find myself questioning, regretting and worrying about decisions I’ve made. Comparing my progress to where others are in their life. Feeling like nothing I do is good enough, so why bother.
Anxiety has that effect.
I don’t stand by any one way to cope, everyone is different. For me, therapy was helpful and mind over matter helps. Not always, but sometimes.
Thanks to The Dainty Pear, I now have a dainty little reminder that I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. I have wanted a bar necklace for awhile, but this one is a bit more special. It’s hand stamped and custom made.
I cannot get enough of it, this necklace means SO much and goes with literally everything! I’ve already been wearing it on repeat, so prepare to see a lot of outfits topped off with this.
This outfit in particular is great for when you don’t know what to wear. You really can’t ever go wrong with a blouse and jeans. You can dress them down with Converse or a pair of Birkenstock sandals. And up with a pair of heels, like I did.
When it comes to hair, I can do a ponytail and that’s pretty much it.
That being said, my hair isn’t long enough for me to really do anything with, so I wear clip-in extensions 99.9% of the time.
It’s not that I have any problem with short hair. After all, I loved how I looked when I shaved all my hair off. And, when it grew back a little, I sported a super cute pixie. Right now though, my it’s just at this kind of awkward length, that I don’t know how to deal with.
This is my ponytail before:
This is my ponytail after:
On the other hand, clip-ins can be expensive, so after my sister (who can actually do hair) gave me a set of clip-ins that she’d made (yes, made!), believe me, I was PUMPED.
Then summer came.
Don’t get me wrong, I love the summer.
But, the sun changes my hair color and the extensions no longer matched. I needed a slightly lighter color and figured I could try my hand at making them myself.
I was able to grab all the supplies I needed (and then some) from Sally Beauty Supply for under $75!
Making clip-ins requires basic sewing skills. Other than that the steps are pretty simple.
Measure.
Cut.
Attach clips. (This is where the sewing comes in.)
If you are using any type of hair other than 100% virgin, you can NOT bleach it. I found this out the hard way. No mermaid ombre hair for me…
