This week on Instagram.

  
1 and 2- I am that person in class that volunteers to do everything because my theory is "I would rather screw it up here then when I get out of school." So, when my instructor informed us that a client wanted her hair lighter and she had waist-length hair I was like me, me me! I also drug my friend Ana down with me. Little did we know the girl had ethnic hair, half of it was a grown out relaxer, aaaaand she wanted to be taken from almost black to a caramel color. I managed to convince her to do highlights so she wouldn't fry her hair. It took us four hours to do, but it was worth it in the end! She looked rad! 

3- Murnau hates pictures. 

4. My friend Ana and I decided to have near-matching hair colors. Yay!

5. Got to watch my sis-in-law get her 3D ultrasound. Baby Corley Rose was PERFECT. Her cheeks are already so chubby it kills me. 

6. Finally got around to cutting my bangs the other day. Whew. 

7. Started on a drawing that I reaaaaaally need to finish of Jennifer from Grits and Moxie. I'll be a sponsor over there soon! 

8. My kit at school! Still waiting on my CHI flat iron. Sigh.

Project Makeover.

A few weeks ago our school put together a little project where one person was nominated to receive a complete makeover. My team had the pleasure of working with Doris, who was pretty much the sweetest lady ever. Her story is really sad. She has raised her grandchildren for the last four years, but somewhere in the last year or so the mother came back and the children are no longer with her. She is now also going through a divorce, and has no income. It was such an honor to be a part in giving her a confidence boost... she looked beautiful. When she walked out in her new outfit and her hair done there were a lot of happy tears. She was like a new woman.

Our team's "Kardashian" moment. Haha. I love how confident she looks!

Hope everyone is having a lovely day!

Mini Wet 'n Wild haul!

I guess it must be the week I had, but my makeup hoarding has gotten a bit out of hand this last week. Although I spent waaaaay too much money at Sephora and MAC this last week (more on that later!), I did manage to hunt down some pretty awesome bargains on Saturday. Rite Aid had a sale on Wet 'n Wild products. I have never used anything from this brand before, so there was a lot of back-and-forth decisions on what to get... which Zach totaaaaally enjoyed standing there while I shopped. I should really start recording some of the stuff he says when he gets dragged along on my little shopping sprees haha. Bless his heart. Anyways, I must say, I am pretty darn impressed with what I got!

Sorry for the blurry pic, but I snagged these two Silk Finish lipsticks for 99 cents each. Whoop!

On the left is "Sunset Peach" and on the right is "Cinnamon". I was not very crazy about how Sunset Peach looked on me. I felt like it emphasized the dry flakies on my lips and the color was just a no go on me. I think when it comes to lipsticks I am a matte girl for the most part because I did not like the finish.  Although, I did really like Cinnamon and I thought that it looked a lot better on me. I will definitely be wearing it out. Sunset Peach, on the other hand, will be given to my friend Ana as I think it will go wonderfully with the pink in her skintone.

Next up is this neat-o palette called "Comfort Zone". Let me just say, holy smokes. I paid just $5 for this and I am pretty positive I am going to go snatch up the other ones. The pigmentation is great. I wore it out tonight at it looks just as good as it did when I left the house. This product alone is going to make me experiment more with Wet 'N Wild products.

Shadows from the left row. Look how gorgeous that definer shadow is! It is silky smooth, too. I wore this combination tonight and it made for such a pretty smokey eye. The only weak one seems to be the browbone color, but the lighting in my room is also balls so it might look better than I give it credit for.

Second row. All lovely colors!

 I have become more and more obsessed with eyebrows lately... I have even been airbrushing mine on to get them to look as arched as possible! Naturally my eyebrows have bald patches and look a bit flat, so a brow powder at the least is a must. I snagged the E.l.f. brow kit from TJ Maxx a week or so ago and I was very underwhelmed by it, so I did not have must faith in this little kit. I thought for $3.99 I might as well try it and I am SO glad I did. My eyebrows were PERFECT and it did not come off at all. I used the lighter powder of the two along with the setting wax and my brows were pin-up worthy. The kit also comes with a little pair of tweezers which I forgot to put back in, but they are pretty great too.

Light brow powder on the left, dark on the right... even though that didn't need explaining.

In all I love almost everything I bought and I am going back tomorrow to try a few more things. Yay!

P.S.- Just a random picture to say I am once again a redhead. I feel so sexy now! (Despite the fact that my skin is utter crap right now.)

P.S.S.- That reminds me. My skin is flaking, super dry, dead looking, and broken out. I am using a new acne cream which is causing the dryness. Right now I am using jojoba oil, but it is not cutting it. I need something cheap, super moisturizing, and unscented. Any recommendations?

One of those weeks.

Do you ever have those weeks where you just want to curl up in a ball and watch Harry Potter and not be around people of the human variety?

This week has been that for me. I feel like everything has gone wrong in some way. My internet has been out, parents are gone on a cruise, I'm having to juggle work/school/ and dinner for my little brother and great aunt. This has also been my first really hectic week since I have been back at school. There have been several points where I have wondered to myself just how smart it is for me to be using sharp objects around people's heads.... kidding (kinda.). Maybe it is the stress of going out on the floor. It is chaotic and I am a nervous wreck out there and I have not had the confidence to really finish a haircut without having someone help me. I hate that. I am not good at asking for help.

I know it all comes with time. I am still learning. I am just frustrated and people seem to be grating on my nerves lately. As in to the point where I got into it with a lady that goes to school with me. Sometimes I tend to let my alligator mouth override my tweety bird butt... I promise she deserved it, though! Haha.

Enough whining, though. The bad weeks make you appreciate the good ones. I am surrounded by amazing people and I have a lot to be thankful for! We also did a really awesome thing at school where we did a makeover on two very deserving women. I can't wait to post the pictures when I grab a minute this weekend... unfortunately I just got internet access again and I have school and work until late tomorrow night. Blah! The makeover went awesomely, though... so many happy tears. Those are my favorite kind.

Hope you all are having a better week than me!

These last few weeks on Instagram.

Wow, I have a lot of catching up to do! It has been a while since I have done an Instagram post... well, it has been a while since I have regularly posted. It feels good to be back! (and that is not just the cough syrup with codeine talking!)

1- Some girls get excited over flowers... I get excited over tea. Still equally romantic!
2- That was a serious conversation. 
3- My mommy and me. She is so lovely! 
4- Kitty cat dress to work... one of my many awesome Christmas gifts! 
5- My brother came home from deployment! This is the first picture I have gotten with him since last year. All we are missing is our oldest brother who had to be at work that day. Boo! 
6- Matilda being gorgeous outside. She likes to sit on the porch and chew on blades of grass. I tried to get her to actually walk in the yard, but she freaked. 
7- Bat paperweight I got Zach for Christmas + an antique book I found in the garage + Zach's glasses. 
8- Awesome vintage dress I got! Need to remove those shoulder pads. They make me look awkward. 
9- Doodle of my friend Ana I did.
10- Christmas day! I miss the Christmas tree. I wish we could keep it up all year. 
11- Maggie does not appreciate tornadoes. This is her, "I would much rather be tearing up toilet paper than to be stuck in here with you and your preggo cousin" face. 
12- My mother and Zach. I love them! 

Hope you all are staying warm and flu free! I think my lungs are falling out myself, but so far the flu hasn't come yet. Keep me in your thoughts and prayers, too... I have an ultrasound in the morning to make sure everything is all good with my baby basket. Hoping for no cysts!

PS- do not get doped up on cough syrup and look for chapstick. You end up accidentally using a homemade cucumber lip balm that is over three years old... those things have a shelf life. I think it was fermented.

School Christmas party.

 

So, if anyone has been following my blog for any length of time you would know I had major issues with my school and took a leave to attempt to transfer. It didn't work out, but I am not really sorry. I love the girls I am with and the other school I toured definitely lacked the family feel my school has. Tomorrow I should be finished up with tests and be able to go out on the floor... yikes! 

Anyways, before I went back I was asked to some in and do a makeup class during the school's Christmas party. I said yes and used my friend Autumn as a model. It was a lot of fun! The look I did was a very obviously inspired by the holidays. Let me just tell ya, Autumn has the most perfect face ever to work on. Her skin is so perfect I just want to smack her (not in a mean way of course.) These pictures are so funny because for whatever reason she looks grumpy, but we were laughing like five minutes before. She is such a fun lady. I wish I would have taken some outside because our classroom lighting is HORRIBLE. Oh well, maybe next time! 

Hope y'all are having a great day and, to those of you in and around Tennessee, I hope you stayed safe during the tornaders! I was home alone during them and my cousin ran to my house because she was home alone too. We hid in a closet with all the critters. Scary stuff! 

 

New year, new me.

I am quite late on this, but I think now is better than ever. There are SO many things I want to accomplish this year! I will be adding to this list as I go along the next few months.

1. Post on my blog more frequently. No more excuses or apologies! This blog is something I have dreamed of for years and I am not going to let it die because I don't make the time to post like I should. I love all my followers and awesome people I have met and I am in this for the long haul.

2. Buy (mostly) vintage or thrifted. Or thrifted vintage! I blow too much money at places like Modcloth... which I still love by the way, but my wallet doesn't. I would also like to incorporate more vintage into my wardrobe.

3. Read a book every month. 

4. Be healthier. This does NOT mean losing weight, but I do want to be healthier on the inside and out. My body works hard for me, so I should treat it to something other than spaghettios.... 

5. Be more organized. I can never find anything! My room is always a wreck.

6. Makeover my bedroom. 

7. Spend more time outdoors. 

8. GRADUATE COSMETOLOGY SCHOOL.

9.  Open an Etsy store. This includes not keeping every vintage item I find. Haha.

10. Clear up my acne. 

11. Write a children's book. Zach and I have been talking about this one a lot lately. I am going to write it and he is going to illustrate it. So awesome!

12. Be kinder to my hair.

13. Do an outfit post every week. 

14. Do a "beauty for a bargain" post every week. 

15. Get a tattoo. Time to stop being a wuss! 

16. Do a DIY project every month. 

17. Be able to run a mile. 

18. Learn to sew. 

So, what about you all? What do you want to do this year?

Abbalope Handcrafted Soap Review!

Hello, lovelies! It has been far too long since I have posted.... life has been hectic, to be honest. Between work and holiday chaos I really felt like I had nothing worthwhile to post about. One thing I never want this blog to be is an obligation. I have too many of those as it is! However, I have made it my New Years resolution to be better about posting. I love my little blog, and I have met some beautiful people in the short time I have had it going. You guys are rad!

Anyways, while Christmas shopping this year I decided I needed to put a few manly items in Zach's stocking. After a bit of searching I came across Abbalope's shop. She had a ton of really awesome looking, handcrafted soaps. I quickly snatched up the leather scented one along with the Santa's pipe scented ones. I wish I had pictures, but they are currently being used up in Zach's shower. I know, I know... "leather scented soap? EWWWW." Maybe it is the Southern part of me, but two of my top favorite scents are leather and tobacco. The leather is definitely my favorite of the two soaps I bought him. The scent is spot-on, and not overpowering at all. I like scents that you have to be snuggling to smell.

I also received some samples of her other soaps. Here is my first-impression of them!

Spearmint Sugar Scrub.Smells like the name suggests! My friend Ana sat in my bedroom floor and begged to take it with her. It smells like a stick of gum... only more natural. Does that make sense? No? Oh well. I love that it contains real cane sugar and coconut oil. My dry skin will love it!

Cucumber and Green Tea. Errrmahgerd. Definitely one of my favorites. When I was in my tweens I had cucumber melon scented EVERYTHING. This is like the "grown-up" version with the green tea. It is a very mild and very fresh scent. I kinda want to eat it, but I probably shouldn't.
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Naouli Lime  smells very fresh as well. I don't really detect any lime, but that could just be my winter allergies. It smells like it may have a little eucalyptus in it, but it is not listed in the description.

Lavender Anise is probably my least favorite of the bunch... Zach smelled it and said "is that absinthe scented?"... which is probably why I don't like it as much. I do not like black licorice. I have many memories of my grandparents offering me candy, only to realize it was black licorice. Black licorice should be renamed "disappointment candy".

Milk and Honey is my favorite of them all! It smells so sweet, but not in that slightly overwhelming vanilla icing scent everyone seems to like (and I do, too! Just not on me!)... it is very mild. I like that about it. The honey, oatmeal, and goat's milk are also a treat for my dry and sensitive skin! This is definitely going to be on the list of ones I will purchase.

Earth Sea and Air. This was also one I was not as crazy about, but that doesn't make it a bad soap! I am just one of those people that doesn't like very floral scents. This soap has a ton of cool ingredients, though! Sea clay and sea salt being two of them.

Tea Tree smells just like, well, tea tree... which I love! I love tea tree oil. This soap would be awesome for someone with body acne, as tea tree oil is great for drying up blemishes.

Snickerdoodle is also on my "to buy" list. It smells soooooo good! My friend Ana also flipped over how yummy this one smelled. I am usually not one for soaps that smell like baked goods, but i am kind of obsessed with this one. My boyfriend loved it, too! 

I also got Tobacco Road, but for whatever reason the picture would not upload correctly. It smells amazing, though. Definitely going to purchase it for Zach. It is a lot like the Santa's pipe scent I got him for Christmas, but without the cherry scent... which I prefer. 

Hope y'all had an awesome New Year's!