An Affordable Makeup Routine

I don't consider myself a pro or anything, but I just really enjoy the makeup application process! Thanks to a few beauty blogs I follow, I've really come a long way. (My two favorites are Kate at The Small Things and Essie Button...if you know of any more good ones please leave a comment below!)

For my daytime makeup, I typically keep it as natural as possible. I believe that makeup should not be used to amplify natural beauty, not to make someone look like an entirely different person. But I could do an entirely different post about that :) So let's stick to my general daily makeup routine.

1. Revlon's Nearly Naked Foundation : Foundation is definitely one of, if not the most important factors to your makeup routine. This is worth investing a little money into! If you just can't afford to pay 40 dollars on makeup product no matter how wonderful they may be, I totally understand. I'm right there with you. I have tried a few other drugstore foundations and BB creams, but this one has been my very favorite. It has a lightweight coverage that looks naturally beautiful! I get the color Ivory because I'm pale folks fo real.

2. Revlon's Powder Blush : Blush is essential to add some color back to my face in the right places after I apply my foundation. If you're new to blush and maybe a little afraid of it, I would start with the color Naughty Nude, or something similar to this pale pink, almost brown-ish color. The key to applying blush correctly is to smile, start applying at the cheekbone, and then come up to form an L-shape up to your forehead. I then blend it in really well by kind of randomly swiping back and forth. (If this makes no sense to you, there are plenty of visual examples on Pinterest, or try Kate's blog!)

3. L'Oreal Eye Liner : I'm not sure that the brand matters as much to me, but I definitely always go for a kohl eyeliner (I usually call it the marker kind...ha!) In my experience, it is a good combination of being easy to apply, decently forgiving, and a good amount of color. I like to get eyeliner in gray if I can find it because it's not as harsh as black on my skin tone, but black is perfect for dramatic smokey or cat eyes! The color you choose is completely up to preference/what works best with your hair and complexion.

4. L'Oreal Colour Riche Lip Balms : I love colored lip balms! They are perfect for daytime because they add just a hint of color while also moisturizing! I own this is Caring Coral, but it's really not as orange as I expected. Perfect! I also really like Revlon's ColorBurst Lipgloss.

5. Maybelline's Eyeshadow in Mocha Motion : For most days, I just swipe the brown color in the upper right-hand corner all over my lid and then apply the off-white color to my inner and outer eye corners as well as under my eyebrows. If I want a little bit of a smokey eye effect, I'll apply the gray color to my crease. Perfect combination! There's even a black included if you want to transition your look from day to night.

6. E.L.F. Eyeshadow Primer : And I wouldn't dream of using shadow without first applying this primer! Best thing is that it's only a dollar! I also use the E.LF. makeup brushes, which are also 1-3 dollars. Amazing!

7. L'Oreal Voluminous Butterfly Mascara : I've tried a few different ones, but I'll always come back to this one! Perfect balance of length and volume, and I sure do need both!


So there you have it, my basic daily makeup routine which takes me around 10 minutes to do. The great part is that every single one of these products are under 10 dollars! What drugstore makeup products do you use on a daily basis?

A Little Pinspiration

Well, I have been engaged now for a little over 2 months. 10 to go! :)

It is amazing how quickly time has already passed. I haven't made many actual plans. I have asked all my bridesmaids, bought only a couple of items for the wedding...and that's about it! I went to David's Bridal a few weeks ago and looked at their bridesmaid dresses and colors, but I overall just wasn't very impressed. I want to go to a little local shop here in Greenville within the next few weeks and hopefully choose a dress for them soon! Eh, that's on my soon-to-do list.

I think that I would describe my wedding style as simple, elegant, modern, with a touch of rustic. Maybe just a little burlap but certainly not a country feel. That's simply not me and Casey. I want to do a bird theme which I think will be really cute! Here are some pictures of things I definitely love:

I really love these cake pops. Since we're getting married in February of next year, I think the snowy look would be just perfect!

This is how I want our cake...only with birds on top :)

This is exactly how I want the pews during the ceremony. We're going to have it at Casey's church...yes, how non-traditional of us.

 I love the beautiful simplicity of this centerpiece. I think I want to stick with white, light pink, and hot pink flowers. I like peonies, but they're kind of expensive, so hopefully we can find some similar flowers for a better price :)

How stinkin' cute is this table? And the colors are perfect :) This blue is more-so what I have in mind.

Casey and I have decided that one thing we really want in our reception is lots of lighting! We love string lights, and I love the tulle around these. So simple yet beautiful!

I love the lighting of course :)

White on white on white just looks so simple but elegant.

I found all of these pictures on Pinterest, but I am not sure of the sources. These are different things I pinned on my wedding board. I love planning and decorating so I'm really looking forward to the next few months and seeing how it all comes together! I will definitely be keeping some updates on the blog every now and then. I can't wait until 2/7/15! :)

Spring Wishlist

A couple of weeks ago, I talked about my love for winter clothes. Pea coats, skinny jeans tucked into boots, scarves, I love it all. The funny thing is that I haven't always loved winter, but I think it's because I didn't know how to dress for it and look cute. I would think winter and think grandma sweaters and overly-puffy coats. Crazy, right?

However, now that the brutal chill of winter is over (I live in NC, can I really complain?) I was excited to finally change out my heavy coats for my spring clothes! I always feel like I'm getting new clothes when I place pieces in my closet that simply haven't been there in awhile :)

I don't have much of a budget for clothes right now, especially since I'm trying to save for a wedding, but once in awhile if I find something cuter for a really good price I may pick it up.

Be forewarned, most of these are from Target. Okay, all but one. So if you aren't obsessed with don't like Target as much as I do, this post may not be for you.

Here are a few things on my Spring wish list:

         
             
       
                   

Necklace : I'll start off with the only that's thing not from Target. It's actually from Forever 21, but Target has one just like it that's just as beautiful in at least two other colors that I know of, red and turquoise, but this one's a few dollars cheaper. I could do any of the colors, but there's something about the pastel pink of this necklace that seems very Spring to me. I've had my eye on the flower statement necklaces at Target almost every time I've gone in, so I may just cave in within the next few weeks.

Skirt : I seriously almost bought this skirt from Target with my birthday money a few weeks back, but I didn't because they didn't have it available in my size. Sad. This is a comfortable skirt that would go with just about anything! You could make it casual with a plain t-shirt and a necklace, or dress it up with a cute blouse and some heels! Really you just can't go wrong with this purchase. Who doesn't love stripes?

Shoes : These are actually on clearance on the Target website for less than 10 bucks. What a steal. I actually saw some in the store the other day that I couldn't find online, but they were the canvas style flat similar to this only in white or black crochet. How stinkin' adorable. I really would like just something similar to this for my casual outfits. I'm a flats-kind-of-girl so this is right up my ally.

Dress : Can you believe I only own 2 maxi dresses? They're so comfortable I used to literally nap in them on Sunday afternoons after church when I was in college. There's also so many different ways to style them, I would love to add another to my closet perhaps similar to this option! I love that it's sleeveless and colorblocked.

Shirt : Here we go again with the pastel pink, but what can I say? I'm all about cute and comfortable these days, and this shirt with a statement necklace and jeans would be just that! They go with literally anything, so you can never have too many solid t-shirts.

What's on your Spring wishlist this year?

Generously Love

When I was attending Bible college, I took a class that was all about to be a good wife. Yes, a class on it. Only at a Bible college.

Of course, hoping that I would soon be engaged, I attempted to soak in all the wisdom I could on the subject. There was a wonderful book of which we were assigned to read particular chapters, and now that I have finished the class and am actually preparing for marriage, I decided I would reread it. I've only reviewed the first chapter of it so far, but I have realized that I have a lot of work to do.

The thing  is, the common perception from those who are unwed (including myself) is that marriage is simple. Easy really. Just be in love, stay in love, and be sweet. Know your duties and fulfill them. Keep the house clean and have kids and take care of them and live happily ever after.

I'm learning, however, that if I want to be and stay happily married, and make my husband happy, I have much preparation before me. Of course, the only way to achieve this is to put Christ first. I cannot expect Casey to fulfill every single one of my desires. Only Jesus Christ can do that. Only out of an abundance of grace and love poured out from Him can I find joy in my relationship with others, including my wonderful husband to-be.

Likewise, as much as I love Casey and want to make him happy and give him everything he wants and needs, I must remember that only God can do that. Our relationships with Him come first, and only then can we find happiness and love in each other.

Perhaps because we are not naturally loving or kind or generous. We're naturally selfish, controlling, and ugly, and only when Jesus Christ pours out His own character upon us will we be able to generously love.

My prayer is that God would mold me into the perfect wife for my beloved, although I never truly will be perfect. I will always make mistakes, but I want to be a help, not a hindrance, to the call God places upon his heart. Being a wife is a serious task with much responsibility, but I'm also looking forward to its many wonderful rewards.