My Hair Routine + No Heat Styling

Happy Monday!  I'm starting this week off with a video of my hair routine! I was getting a lot of requests to show how I style it in between washings, and I finally sat down and filmed every day last week from Thursday through Sunday.

The video is way too long and I repeat myself constantly (sorry!) but it will give you an idea of how I style my hair (with no heat) on days 3 and 4 of my routine. You can read all about my hair washing routine here. I still wash it twice a week like before, but I've started to use no heat on days 3 and 4 of my routine. 

I didn't want to spend time on weekends styling my hair so I found a system that works for me to make it look styled when it hasn't been. The big disclaimer here is that this may not work for every hair type. I have thin hair, but a lot of it and I have long hair that has a natural wavy texture and holds curl very well. If you have a similar hair type to mine, this may work very well for you. You never know until you try!

I took the pictures below on Sunday (my "4th day hair") which you'll see at the end of the video.

I hope you enjoy the video and please let me know if you have any questions I didn't go over.

Have a great week!

Our Weekend...

Happy Sunday! 

Our weekend started early when Kevin and I went on a date night to the Jay-Z and Beyonce concert Friday. It was incredible! Beyonce is super gorgeous and talented, we absolutely loved the show. We had seen Jay-Z and Kayne during their "Watch the Throne" tour a few years ago, and I think to-date, that has been my favorite concert of all time. One of the sweetest parts of the "On The Run" tour was the video montage at the end which showed footage of Beyonce's pregnancy, the birth of Blue Ivy and home videos of their life together as a family. I got teary-eyed at the end, I'm such a sap. I also realized I'm getting old because damn were we exhausted the next day. I think we went to bed at 1 a.m.

A rare couple's selfie at the show!

Saturday morning we were pretty much both zombies but we made it through Little Gym and grabbed some Starbucks coffee and breakfast for home. Harper wasn't herself all morning. Some of the other parents at Little Gym even mentioned how she seemed off (she's usually really outgoing and laughs and runs around all over the place and gets so excited) and she was basically the opposite of that. I thought she might be coming down with something but she seems okay. She ended up wanting to sleep right after LG, so we all took a nap while she slept, and those extra two hours of sleep were heaven.

Stealing my empty cup!

When Harper woke up from her nap we ate lunch and then headed to Stride Rite to check out some shoes for her. I didn't see anything I liked there (everything was pink and purple and glittery) so we went down a few stores to Imagination Toys & Shoes. They didn't have a ton of selection for younger babies and toddlers, but they had the Salt-Water sandals that I've been wanting to get for Harper. They are so cute! We went with the navy ones so they won't show any marks on them. I sent her to daycare in some light tan sandals last week and they got so many scuffs on them from outdoor play (which is fine, but I would rather just put her in shoes that can scuffed but won't show marks).

saltwater sandals: here, here, here or here

We don't usually shop at Whole Foods other than very occasionally for specialty items, but we stopped in this weekend because one of the doctors I work with recommended a certain bug spray for Harper that is sold there called "Skeeter Screen." It's what she uses on her own kids and it's deet-free.

Saturday night I went out for a girl's night with Candice and her cousin and friends who were visiting from Canada. We went to El Tiempo and it was delicious. I ended up getting home at 11:30, so it was another late night for me�

top- joe fresh |  jeans- gap  |  shoes- banana republic  |  bag- kate spade (LOVE this updated one!) | bracelet- j.crew (factory version here, on sale!)  |  necklace- dolceave ?  

Today we laid low and I had another nap with Harper in the AM. She's down to one nap at a day at daycare, but on weekends she seems to want two naps�but she may just be teething or extra tired this week since it was her first week in her new toddler class.

We then ventured out to pick out a birthday gift for a party we have next weekend and I picked up some stuff for Harps and me while we were out.

This adorable top is more of a true coral in real life and it's too cute! I got it a gymboree.

More bows from baby gap, the only ones she keeps in her hair all day�speaking of hair, can we talk about these curls?

This gorgeous coral dress from gap was a sale find- it must have been an online return because it's a 6 tall. Though it's a tall, it's still not as long as it should be, so add it to the dresses I need the hem taken out of. It's wearable though. It also comes in white, but I opted for a color I didn't already own. The white is gorgeous!

Lastly, I picked up my beloved NARS laguna bronzer and two 100-point samples including St. Tropez's gradual face-self tanner.

Hope you had a happy weekend! 

On Repeat?

Lately, I find myself wearing the same pieces to work over and over. I definitely have my favorite, no-brainer outfits that I always feel fantastic in, so I often repeat them or switch out one element like paring the same top with a different skirt.

One of my favorite things about blogging used to be shopping and picking out new looks to style and share. I've purchased some new pieces in the last few months, but I'm really finding that the majority of the items I wear have been in my closet for some time. 

The outfits I share on my blog are always "in real life" outfits, meaning that I actually wear the outfits I post to work. I sometimes think of how fun it would be to style outfits "just because" or to experiment with something really trendy that might be out of my comfort zone, but I like my blog to be a place where women who work in an office setting can get some inspiration. That often comes with the caveat that I'm showcasing a lot of similar looks.

I hope y'all are okay with me sharing outfits that are similar to recent ones I've worn. I'm always on the lookout for new pieces I can share, but I don't get a chance to shop as often as I used to (especially because I prefer to try items on--- so though ordering online is convenient, it often means I'm returning a lot of what I order).

Here's what I wore yesterday:

skirt- j.crew, factory version on sale for $34! | top- zara (similar)  | shoes- nine west  | necklace- tiny tags, ? 

Happy Friday & have a great weekend!

Black With a Flare

I'm still on my dress streak and I've been loving fuller skirts lately. Over the years, I've worn this Club Monaco dress too many times to count. It's such a substantial cotton---but still feels airy enough for these hot and humid days.

I also have to acknowledge my gold key necklace. This is a super old find from F21 that I got for like $4. I haven't worn it in quite some time, but something called me to it when I spotted it in my jewelry drawer. It's so simple and pretty and you can't beat that price. I really like this one that is available there now.

dress- club monaco (old) (under $100, splurge, similar)  |  shoes- nordstrom  |  key necklace- F21 (similar)

Have a great day!

Sale Alert: Madewell Modern Linen Tee

This outfit is totally a repeat from last week (paired with a different skirt), but wanted to share quick post because this modern linen heathered top from Madewell is on sale right now and I didn't want y'all to miss out if you wanted to pick one up! It's so comfy and the gray is a really beautiful tone. I especially love the way it looks under a blazer.

modern linen heathered tee- madewell

Happy Tuesday!

Review: Younique 3D Fiber Lash Mascara

If you check Facebook pretty regularly then you've probably seen posts about Younique 3D Fiber Lash Mascara in your newsfeed. I was pretty intrigued by it so when Stephanie reached out to me to review it for my blog, I was eager to test it out.

I had seen lots of before and after photos on Facebook and wondered if I'd have such dramatic results, too.

This product delivers lush, long full lashes---but I think technique is key here. You kind of have to play around with it to determine what your best application will be.

I like to use one coat of transfer gel, one coat of fibers and then finish off with a second coat of transfer gel. Some people use a regular coat of mascara before applying the first layer of transfer gel, but Stephanie actually gave me a heads-up to try it without regular mascara because it tends to look dramatic yet still natural.

Younique 3D fiber lashes can make your lashes look clumpy if you aren't careful in your application. I'm usually a one coat and done type person with my regular mascara, so this was a little more time consuming, but well worth it on days where you want a little more drama and don't want to use Latisse or false lashes/lash extensions. 

Below I'm posting photos with descriptions---I did one eye with regular mascara + the Younique fiber lashes and the other with just the Younique fiber lashes.

Okay, so here are my lashes, just curled with a lash curler and nothing else on them:

Here is my eye with just the transfer gel and fiber lashes (NO regular mascara as a base coat):

...and here is the eye with the extra coat of regular mascara (I used DiorShow as seen above) + Younique 3D fiber lashes

As you can see, with the extra coat of regular mascara, it can get a bit clumpy if you aren't careful. This can be remedied with technique and I've only been testing it out for a little over a week so I could use some more practice. One thing I really appreciate about this mascara is that though it's not a waterproof formula, it doesn't weigh down my lashes like most regular mascaras do so my lashes can stay curled.

Here are some shots of my full face from a little further away so you can see the effect:

If you're interested in ordering the 3D fiber lashes, visit www.beyoutifulwithsteph.com. If you have any questions, you can reach out to her via Facebook. Overall I'm very happy with these results! It's also easy to remove at night (I just use my regular eye makeup remover). 

Stephanie is also generously giving away one Younique 3D Fiberlash mascara set! All you have to do is "like" her Facebook page and enter below via Rafflecopter. The winner will be chosen at random in a week!


a Rafflecopter giveaway

FTC: I was given the mascara for review. I was not compensated for this post. 

Our Weekend...

It's Sunday night and we are exhausted from a fun weekend. It started off with our morning Little Gym class where we met new friends and played with hula hoops. Then, we headed over to Amanda's house to celebrate Cami's first birthday! 

Harper had a blast and there were about 12 babies there at one point so as you can imagine, the playroom was a wreckage. Here we are trying to get some of the babies to sit in close proximity for a group photo�(I'll let you guess how that went)

 Mamas + babies

Around 3 all of the babies started to have meltdowns and we headed home and Harper napped from 3:30-6:30 since she missed her usual nap because she was having too much fun. 

We ended up taking a nice evening walk where Harper rocked her sunnies threw her sunnies on the ground and we had to go back and find them. Lately on weekends we try to do a morning and evening walk because it's cooler then. When we say "do you want to go outside for a walk?" Harper squeals with delight and runs to the baby gate to go downstairs.

Today we had lunch at Zoe's Kitchen and Harper loved it! She even danced in her chair a little bit and was such a ham waving to people eating there.

After lunch we ran some errands and came home to FaceTime with my mom�they were singing "if you're happy and you know it!"

I basically ran out of all of my hair products at once, so I picked up some favorites and some new ones to try at Ulta today. I will review the new ones soon!

macadamia hair mask  |  ojon damage reverse restorative smoothing glaze  |  redken guts 10  |  ojon restorative hair serum  | benefit eye bright

I hope your weekend was amazing!