Category: Beauty and Style

Holiday Gift Guide

I absolutely love giving gifts! I love putting thought into the gifts that I give to the people that I love and making them happy with something that they’ll enjoy and hopefully use. However, I know from experience that shopping for the women in your life can be difficult, even if you are one yourself. So I went on a shopping trip with one of my friends recently and some things caught my eye that I thought would be good ideas for gifts! I tried to keep things on the less expensive side as well, because as a broke college kid myself I know the struggle of wanting to spoil your friends but needing to stay within a budget. Here are some of the things I found…

gift-guide

Jewelry is always a good bet. I’ve found that Francesca’s has some really cute pieces of jewelry for pretty reasonable prices. Another great place you can also go is Icing, which is a favorite of mine and my roommate’s! These earrings are really pretty, and these are cute as well! Studs can go with anything, whether for a dressed up or a more casual outfit. They go with anything, and look cute on anyone!

Also from Francesca’s, when I was there the other day I saw that they had a bunch of cute initial necklaces, which would make for a pretty personalized gift. This one is a little but simpler, but this one is a little but bigger with a longer chain.

Sweaters are also a good bet because I know that during the winter a cute and warm sweater will always be put to good use! This one from American Eagle Outfitters is on sale right now, and I checked the rest of their selection and they have a lot of cute things. But really, if you go to any department store you can some really cute options on sale this time of year.

Victoria’s Secret always has some really great sales this time of year. There’s lots of pretty scents and a bunch of different kinds of things, like lotions, sprays, and oils. So really there’s something for everyone! Especially with all the different scents, as well. Every girl has her favorite. I know that my roommate’s favorite is Wild at Heart. My personal favorite would have to be Sun Kissed.

Finally, for a book lover, “Milk and Honey,” is a collection of poetry by Rupi Kaur, and is beautifully written. When I picked this book up in the bookstore I couldn’t put it down! The illustrations are simple and gorgeous, too! Also, to check and see if this poetry would be your cup of tea, then check out Rupi Kaur’s (the author’s) instagram, @rupikaur_ . She has posted pictures of pages from the book, so check them out to see if you’ll definitely like it before you buy it!

Some final ideas off the top of my head for simple and inexpensive gifts would be a plaid blanket scarf, tea with a cute mug to go with it, or a small decoration from a local artist would make for a thoughtful gift, too!

Happy shopping, I wish you good luck in finding the perfect gift for that someone special! But just remember, sometimes the most perfect gift of all is just time spent together! Set up a girl’s night out for your friends and surprise them with something like tickets to the theater or a concert! Or give your significant other a gift card for a restaurant you both like and tell them to pick a date when you can both go together! Honestly, these are the gifts I love giving and receiving the most. Memories are precious and priceless.

XOXO

L

 

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Haul: Hollister, JC Penney, and Accent Z

Hello everyone!

My roommate and I went shopping the night before we both left for Thanksgiving Break. It was a long… long week. Or really, it was a long month. Three projects were due within the span of two days, right before we left for break. So, after I turned in my course paper for my British Literature class, my last project, we decided to go to the mall. I had been wanting to go on a shopping trip for a long time, so after a busy and stressful week seemed like the best time to go! We ended up going to a bunch of stores, but I got things from JC Penney, Hollister, and a new store I had never been to before called Accent Z.

I got these thigh high boots from Accent Z. I had been looking for a cute and reasonably priced pair, and I stumbled across these. I had never heard of the store before, but my roommate and I decided to go in on a whim and I’m so glad we did! Tia and I were both able to get a pair of boots because they were buy one get one half off. The girl that checked us out was super nice and I think she gave us a discount on top of that. I’ve worn them about twice since, and I love them! I looked online and I couldn’t find the exact pair, but this pair from Target is similar and is also at a pretty good price.

Then we went to Hollister, where I got this long sleeve gray lace-up top and the pink lace off the shoulder body suit. Hollister was having a 40% off sale, but be warned, the sale says it’s 40% off the entire store but it isn’t! I was bitten by that by the gray top but I liked it so much I wanted to get it anyway. Tia got a couple of cute things, too, including a great jacket she was able to get a really great price for!

At JC Penney I got the gray knit cardigan and the white vest. The white vest is faux fur and it is so furry and comfortable I don’t think I’m ever going to take it off.

I wore some of the pieces in an outfit and today and I’m really happy about the way it turned out!

outfit

 

XOXO

L

 

November Favorites

Hello Everyone!

How did it get to be December already?? I thought I would do my first favorites post this month, because there were some things that I definitely used and wore over and over. Here are four things that I really loved during November.

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This pink sweater is by far my favorite sweater right now. I got it at a local Community Aid, and it is so fluffy and comfortable and perfect to wear with jeans or leggings. I also love the soft pink color…. Cute and comfortable! What else can you ask for, really? I looked online and since I thrifted it I couldn’t find an exact match, but this one is cute and is fairly priced, if you want one that is slightly similar!

The Lorac Pro Matte Palette is next, and I am pretty sure I’ve worn these colors every day for a month, if not even longer. The colors are so nice and natural, and the pigmentation is perfect. The colors stay for a really long time without primer. My favorite color in the palette would be the “Pink Mauve,” it’s light but you can still tell you’re wearing eye shadow. Here it is on Amazon, if you’re interested!

The DKNY Be Delicious perfume isn’t just a favorite this month, I’ve worn this perfume every fall and winter for years! I love the smell of the apples, it makes me think of orchards and happy memories 🙂 Here it is on Amazon!

The black choker is quite possibly my favorite of my favorites this month, just because it’s so easy to get. I got this faux leather chord from AC Moore’s! Chokers can be so expensive at the mall… I just go to the craft store and pick out ribbons and strips of velvet that I like and tie it around my neck, and there you go! The smaller rolls can be pretty inexpensive, and if you go online or use the in store fliers at Micheal’s or AC Moore’s, you can get pretty good coupons usually!

Thank you for reading, happy December everyone!

XOXO

L

OOTW: Breaking Out the Riding Boots!

Hello everyone!

I had a crazy busy week, but I thought I would try to document my outfits that I wore every day! I took a picture of what I was wearing by the end of the day, because let’s face it… For those early classes, we all know that we wear those sweatpants!

// MONDAY //

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sweater, thrifted / scarf, handmade gift / leggings, khols / socks, target / boots, target

// TUESDAY //

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cardigan, target / dress, h&m / scarf, khols / boots, target / boot socks, target

// WEDNESDAY //

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turtleneck bodysuit, thrifted / skirt, thrifted / tights, target / ankle boots, thrifted

// THURSDAY //

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shirt, h&m / jeans, hollister / boots, target

// SATURDAY //

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shirt, forever 21 / jeans, hollister / belt, thrifted / boots, khols

I’m sorry about Friday… I either forgot to take a picture that day or I accidentally deleted the picture from my phone. Also, please excuse the dirty mirror in the first few pictures. By Thursday or Friday I finally cleaned it, haha! I also found these cute pumpkin stickers around my mirror at Walmart when I went with my friends on Friday. Lots of fun Fall stuff out right now!

This was either the first of second week that my riding boots got a lot of wear. I love dressing for Fall. Riding boots, plaid shirts and skirts, big sweaters with leggings, and a lot of dark autumnal colors are some of my favorite things to wear!

Happy Fall, everyone. AKA, riding boot season!

L

3 Matte Lip Glosses I’ve Been Loving

I will be the first to admit that I am a lip product junkie. I’ve always been really into darker, vampy lipsticks for years. Especially red and plum shades of lipsticks. But recently I’ve been really loving pink shades, especially during this past spring. Now that it’s summer, I’ve started to try more matte lip glosses. And since those lip kits by Kylie Jenner are so expensive, I’ve experimented with a bunch of drugstore brands’ matte lipsticks. These three were my favorites, and I’ve been loving wearing them during these first few weeks of summer…

NYX Lingerie in Baby Doll

This gloss is a lot lighter than I would have originally chosen for myself, but my cousin gave me this tube and I fell in love with it! The only thing is that because it is such a light color, application can be frustrating because it can be difficult in order to get the matte look right.

Maybelline Vivid Matte Liquid in Nude Flush

This color is so pretty as well, but I especially love the formulation of this product. It’s so smooth, but it is also has staying power.

NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream in Antwerp

This color is such a pretty rosy color on, but in the tube it looks more muted than it does in person. It’s still super gorgeous and it’s definitely my favorite right now!

Here’s what they look like on…

I hope you’re all having a great summer so far! Let me know what your favorite makeup looks are, I’m always up to try something new!

With love,

L

 

 

Target Haul: vacation prep and Father’s Day

Oh, Target. I think that I (and every human on earth) could easily get lost in this place. This is the only place where I can go into the store thinking that I’ll only need one simple thing, like makeup wipes, and get distracted in two seconds flat. Usually by the clothing section, since you can see the Junior section right when you walk in the door. Which is mean when you don’t have an awful lot of money to spend and there are so many cute sundresses and skirts and things to get distracted by.

I had a bunch of things that I needed to pick up for my upcoming vacation at the beach. I’m sure I forgot a million things that I need for the trip. I’m sure that I have one or two Kmart trips in my future this coming week. This is what I got tonight…

I was completely out of both the Daily Brush Cleaner and the dry shampoo. Both are things I use nearly every day. I’ve been out of the dry shampoo for weeks. If I’m honest, since finals week. In May. I’ve been putting baby powder in my hair as a makeshift dry shampoo. Thank God I remembered today!

I’ve also been wanting to try a setting spray, and I picked this one out because I love ELF products, it seems pretty portable and easy to throw in my bag, and it was $3. So if it sucks, it was only three bucks, right?

I bought this on a whim because I have been looking for the perfect orange lip product since last summer, and I thought i would give this one a shot. I tried it on when I got home and I fell in love. The formulation is perfect and made the application so easy. It dried quickly and is matte, no streaks. I’m probably going to wear this cream lipstick every day for the rest of the summer. And I’m probably going back to Target soon and buy the rest of the NYX Liquid Suede line. It’s so much better than the NYX Lingerie gloss I’ve tried!

I’ve been wanting a new workout bra, and this one was pretty cute and held me in nicely. Believe me, I was jumping around in the fitting room to test it. Everything short of a plank. You have to make sure you’re spending money on something that’s functional, right? (I hope I’m not the only one that does that)

The detailing on the back is too cute, and I loved the color. It looks paler in this picture, but IRL it’s a brighter baby blue. Other than black and my bright pink Nike sneakers that I wear during every workout, the majority of my workout clothes are blue. I’m happily adding this one to the docket!

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This tank top is so cute! The criss-cross straps in the back is what caught my eye originally, and I think this will be something nice to wear when I’m at the beach. It’s just what I needed… something casual and cute to throw on!

Okay Dad… If you’re reading this, STOP READING!!

I got my Dad a card for Father’s Day, and I thought this one was cute. I thought the blurb was funny and I definitely think he’ll like it.

That’s everything I got on this Target trip. I know I’m not the only one who goes crazy there… I went with my mom and she did too, haha! What about you guys, is there such a ting as a person who can go to target and only pick up one or two things? I don’t think so. But you learn something every day, right?

With love,

L

Chop Chop

So I had a most eventful day today! I went running with one of my close friends from high school in gorgeous 80 degree weather, which was so much fun. We went out to get smoothies together afterwards, which was so much fun, too! Then, after that, my dad surprised me with exciting news… I made Dean’s List for the spring semester, and I am so beyond thrilled!

After a celebratory dinner at one of my favorite restaurants, a creperie in the city near me, I went to the salon… And I took the plunge! I’ve been wanting to try the long shaggy bob since last summer, but I haven’t had the guts to try it until now! This is the picture that I found and showed to my hair stylist, who did such an amazing job!

messy-wavy-hairstyle

I asked for this cut, and for my hair to fall just under my collar bones.

This is before the cut… Look at how tangled the tips of my hair looks! There was so much damage that needed to be cut off.

Aaaand this is after!!

I am so in love with this cut! I have had long long long hair for years, so it was a much needed change. I haven’t had short hair since I was four or five years old! But I hadn’t gone to get my hair cut in a year, and my hair was really damaged from that. We’re talking two inch split ends, here. What can I say? College kind of distracted me.

That, along with the niggling desire to get this style cut, I decided to go for it! I thought I was going to cry when she cut my hair (I lost about 8 to 10 inches!), but when she started cutting, I felt exhilarated and excited! I got layers to frame the face, and my stylist used a 1″ curling iron and styling cream after blowing out my hair. I watched her so that I could try to duplicate what she did on my own. After my appointment, I went out and bought a ceramic 1″ Revlon curling iron and Pixie Play Crafting Cream from Garnier from Kmart (the total for the purchase was around $19… and I bought a nail polish, too!), so hopefully those products work. After I get used to the new hair-do, I’ll probably post what I do to maintain the look!

But seriously guys, I learned such a big lesson today. If you ever really want to do something, just go for it! Even if it turns out to be a mistake, at least you did it, right? After all, hair will grow back 🙂

L

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