Bodysuits and Boyfriend Jeans

 Body Suit: TJ Maxx, similar here Denim: American Eagle Here; Shoes: Love D, similar here; Sunnies: Windsor, similar here

Guys. I just got back from walking all around Disneyland and California Adventure all day long (I'm writing this last night). And I'm so beat. Like I couldn't have hung for any longer, maybe even would have left sooner. :P I went with my hubby's whole family (his EIGHT brothers and sisters and his parents). Unfortunately Ben had to work so he didn't get to come. :( But it was still super fun, and I got my happiest place on earth fill. I seriously LOVE Soarin' Over California so much. It makes me happy to live where we do in such a beautiful place! Now I'm ready for this week to be over already. :P My hubby has been working way too many hours, and I MISS him. But I'm mostly ready for the end of the week because Sunday is our ONE YEAR anniversary! And we are headed up to Santa Barbara for a few nights to celebrate. I. Can't. Wait. I have a fun wedding post coming later this week so stay tuned!

I wore this outfit a few weeks ago on a coffee date with my hubby to Portola Coffee Lab at the OC Mix Mart. Boyfriend jeans are my absolute favorite right now. I just can't have enough pairs! These American Eagle ones are way baggier than most I own. Actually if I unrolled them, you might think I stole my little brother's jeans. But I love that about them! Last time I wore them I paired them with a crop, and this time I paired them with a body suit! Normally I actually really love loose tees with boyfriend jeans but because these are extra baggy I like to contrast them with a tighter piece. It also helps to keep a feminine look to the outfit. What is your favorite way to wear boyfriend jeans?

Bohemian Max-sody

Dress: Forever 21 here; Shoes: Love D here; Hat: Forever 21, similar here; Necklace: Forever 21 similar here; Bag: Susie's Deals, similar here

Happy Thursday! How has everyone's week been? I hope good! Yesterday my hubby worked his first 24 hour shift on the ambulance so I decided I needed to do something to keep myself occupied all day. I went to Home Depot and got several cans of spray paint to distress my kitchen table. I've been wanting a new table for a while because our kitchen table is just sort of blah. So I decided to distress it instead. I literally cannot tell you how happy I am with it! I will probably do a quick post on it with before and after photos soon on the blog for you all! I'm so happy it's Thursday. Tomorrow, my hubby is off, and we FINALLY get to spend more than an hour or two together. He was gone for five days straight and then came home and went right back to work. And so I really miss him and can't wait for some good QT. 

Now on to this outfit. Ya'll need to go get this dress or just click that little button up there and order it! It's only $20! And it's the perfect fall maxi dress. Forever 21 is seriously da bomb. And if you're feeling bold, the dress also comes in cream! I thought about getting that one too but I was planning to wear this to a wedding, and I still adhere to the no white to weddings rule. (By the way, the day I was gonna wear this to the wedding was literally 105 degrees. Needless to say, I did not wear it. :P) I paired it with this hat and necklace that are also Forever purchases and these perfect heels. Seriously probably my favorite heels I own. My feet are sensitive, and honestly I can't wear heels for more than a few hours. But THESE, I can literally wear all day. Love them so much. 

I hope you all have the best weekend! I'm off to Laguna today to do hair and makeup for a test shoot. Always a good day if you get to work with a view of the beach. 

xoxo, 

Christine

Five Minute Wavy Hair Tutorial

So I was getting ready the other day and decided to snap a few photos during the process of doing my hair so you could see a fun easy way to make your hair wavy! If your hair isn't already damp, you can always spray it down a little bit with water or even with the Redken Wax Blast spray I posted below! Enjoy!

1. When your hair is about 80% dry, braid it into two French Dutch braids as shown (regular French braids should work just fine too!).

2. Blow dry your braids to get out the remainder of the dampness and set the waves.

3. Spray with Redken Wax Blast (This is one of my favorite product for texture but you can use whatever you have on hand), undo braids and spray again.

And VOILA! Sexy bed head beach waves!

P.S. Did anyone else wake up to see the lunar eclipse last night?? My hubby had to be up for work at 4am so I told him if it was still eclipsing to wake me up so I could see. It was seriously so cool. Wish I had been awake enough to grab the real camera to snap a photo!  :P

                      

The heavens declare the glory of God.

The skies proclaim the works of his hands.

Psalm 19:1

Nectar Clothing and BFFs

^^^Can't even tell you how long it took to get this shot :P

My outfit: Shirt: Nectar Clothing here; Flannel: Hurley, similar here; Shorts: Forever 21; similar here; Birks: Urban Og here; Sunnies: Silvano Apparel here  Gemma's Outfit: Flannel: Her Hubby's, similar here; Shorts: Forever 21,similar here Birks: Thrifted, similar cheap version here, other here; Sunnies: Urban Outfitters, similar here

So, obviously we had a ton of fun with this shoot. My bff and roomie of five years, Gemma, just recently started a blog Following Arrows, and we decided to do a shoot together! I went to a VIP launch party for Nectar Clothing (Seriously check out their cute stuff! I got the cutest jumpsuit and a dress so be on the lookout for some fun posts featuring their items!), and Gemma got to be my plus one. It was seriously the best party. Food. Drinks. Music. And some seriously good girl time with Gemma and a couple other girls. We also got these cute tees. I love that they say "Giving back is the new black". Because that's exactly what I want to be about in my life. Being selfless and giving back whenever I can. So we obviously decided that we should do a fun shoot in them. We used the self timer and took a million photos to try to get it just right because we couldn't see what we were doing. And then we snapped a few photos of each other too. We had so much fun we might do a shoot together maybe once a month! It's so fun to have a friend that lives nearby and blogs because we can do fun stuff like this together!

Also, quick recap on my Social Media Fast. OMG. I go on my Insta SO much. I can't even tell you. Fasting from it made me realize how much I go on. Like I was even out on a run and stopped at a light, and I went to pull out my phone to look. Or just anytime my phone was in my hand, I would just swipe over to Instagram. I definitely need to be more purposeful with my time. Luckily for me, I worked the whole day and then went straight to a birthday party so I didn't have a ton of time to just sit on it but I do know that I paid more attention to my clients, and I didn't have my phone to distract me at the party so I just hung out. Then my cousin came over for a sleepover because Ben was gone and we had to do hair for a wedding the next day, and I'm sure if I had been able to go on my Instagram, I would have been less present hanging out with her. And we had the best girly time just chatting and painting our nails. So all in all, it was a really good experience, and now I'm working on how much I go on and let it take up my time. I may even try it again soon on a day I'm home so I can learn how to avoid it even when I'm not busy. 

Hope you all are having the best week! 

xoxoxo,

Christine

Liebster Award

Hi ladies! I was nominated by Aly of Living in Style OC for the Liebster Award (read here more about it and what YOU have to do if I nominated you!). It's an award given to new bloggers in an effort to promote them and help them to grow (which is what we all hope for!). As a newcomer blogger, I am very honored! This is a fun way to help promote other newbie bloggers like myself and to get to know new bloggers. Make sure you check out all of the bloggers I nominated below! We all put so much time and effort into our blogs, and I can sincerely say we appreciate the support because without you, our readers, our blogs wouldn't exist! Find us all on Instagram too and follow along! I always post more than I do here on my blog so you can see my fun outfits I wear day to day or maybe see my cutie hubby make a debut.

My answers to Aly's Questions: 

1.  If you could take only 3 items from your closet what would they be?

ONLY THREE?! Um my tan Sam Edleman Petty booties, my lace kimono and my Paige skinnies.

2.  Which fashion designer takes your breath away?

Seeeeeee #4. :P

3.  What is your go to outfit when in a hurry?

When I'm in a hurry, I'll put on jeans, a t-shirt, booties, and a statement necklace to glam it up.

4.  If you had the chance to partner with any designer who would it be and why?

Ok so I'm going to be real here. I was going to pick a designer that I know I like some of their stuff and then say that. BUT to be completely honest, I do not have a designer obsession. Quite frankly, I probably couldn't tell you what designer creates what type of clothing and all that. Maybe as a blogger I should but I really don't. I see things that are cute and that I like, and I buy them. And usually I don't even buy the designer things because I can't pull the trigger on the price. I'm the queen of finding good deals or finding dupes of designer styles at a fraction of the cost. So there you have it #bloggertruths

5.  Who is your favorite blogger to follow? 

I'm obsessed with Barefoot Blonde and Cara Loren. They are the two that originally inspired me to start my blog. I also just recently found Twenty Something Boulevard and I loved her blog so much I went back and read every. single. post.  I love a blog that is personable and helps me get to know the person a little bit in addition to providing me with awesome fashion photos.

6.  If you could switch spots with a celebrity for a day who would you choose?

I guess I would have to say Jimmy Fallon. His show is so fun. I die over the lip sync battles and hashtags. Would love for that to be my life for a day.

7.  What is your dream fashion/accessory purchase?

My dream fashion purchase would be a designer purse, probably a Celine, or some Jeffrey Campbell shoes (Those are two I AM familiar with :P)

8.  Name your 2 fall must haves?

My two fall must-haves are a felt fedora like this one here and distressed jeans like these here

9.  How long have you been blogging?

I have been blogging just a little over six months!

10. What are 3 words that describe your blog?

Simple, heartfelt and fun

11. If you weren’t blogging what would you be doing?

Maybe watching a show! I was just watching Nashville but got sidetracked with this! But honestly I probably spend less time blogging than most people spend watching TV.

BLOGS I NOMINATE:

1. Moda Prints 
My blogger bestie, Alena, that I meant through Insta and am about to meet in real life at the end of this month. Eeeek so excited! She's killer at "blogger faces"  and using the iPhone self-timer(making her teach me when she comes to visit) and she has a serious gift at mixing patterns and prints and colors and putting together the cutest outfits. To top it off, we both got married in October and wore the same wedding dress #meanttobe

                                      

2. Following Arrows Gemma, my real life bestie and former roommate of five years who just started a blog a few weeks ago. She documents her life and adventures with her cute hubby and shares about life's hard lessons, happy moments and the clothes she wears to get through them.

3. Twenty Something Boulevard Nicole. This girl is real. That's what attracted me to her blog. She's super cute and does outfit posts but she also shares a lot just about life and the realities of blogging and relationships and God. And she has an amazing knack for writing. I'm hooked.

4. Richellexo Richelle, hottest mama around with three cute boys and all the fun stories you can think of that might accompany a life with three little men. Plus she has the most gorgeous all natural long hair #obsessed and has a style that conveys simplicity with just the perfect amount of glam.

5. Ella Brooks Melissa, trendy blondie mama with two adorable kids names Ella and Brooks and perfect style. How could you not already love her?! #iwannabeacutemomjustlikeyousomeday

6. Heart Jackie Jackie. This. Girl. Seriously obsessed. Her photos are flawless. She's a hairstylist just like me. And to top it off she has an awesome sense of humor. Plus her latest post revealed that her constantly straight hair is actually curly. Let's all go leave her a comment and tell her to leave it curly more mmmmk? Too cute.

7. A Splash of Blonde Elle (ps, don't hate me if I steal your name for my baby some day :P), cutest little blondie from Chicago. She was one of the first bloggers I found outside of the "bigger" ones I follow and was actually very influential in letting me see I could start a blog too! Easy laid back style complete with a little sarcasm. Love it. Oh and those legssss. Let's not talk about them too much. Shorty over here might get sad. :P

QUESTIONS FOR MY NOMINEES: (Indulge me! I love getting to know fun personal facts about all the bloggers I follow! It helps me feel connected to them, and when I feel connected to them, I tell all my friends (and my poor hubby!)about them, and you want me to do that!) READY GO!

1. How tall are you? (Photos can be so deceiving so I think it's fun to actually know! Like I'm only 5'2")

2. Who takes the photos for your blog?

3. Who is your favorite blogger?

4. What's your guilty pleasure when it comes to food?

6. What are your favorite shoes in your closet?

8. What's your go-to outfit?

9. A song comes on the radio in your house, no one's home, and you start dancing around the house. What's the song?

10.What do you do to relieve stress?

11. What's your dream vacation spot?

 One fun, random fact about you:

I seriously had so much fun with this! As I was writing about each of you and then thinking of questions for you, it made me realize what a fun little world this is that I'm a part of. I realized you all bring something fun and unique to the table and that there's those few things that really stick out about you and make me attracted to you and your blogs! And I picked all of you because even though I actually have only met two of you in person, I feel like I know you and like we're friends just simply from our blogger and Instagram interactions! I visit your blogs every time you post, usually within hours of you posting. You girls are wonderful. Keep up all the hard work. Even on the days when it's hard, and you feel discouraged, don't give up. I see your hard work and love all of your blogs and know that soon enough, everyone else will too! I've already been imagining what you might answer to the questions so I can't wait for you to post! Don't forget to nominate your favorite bloggers too!

Two Ways To Style a Shirt Dress

So Imma be real honest with you for a minute. I don't love these pictures. I thought about not posting them. The lighting wasn't the greatest, and my forehead stress vein was out (For some reason anytime I'm stressed I get this vein on my forehead that pops out! Seriously go look. You'll see it.). I was stressed because we took these photos in a random church parking lot near our house DURING church hours. And I obviously changed between these two outfits (plus another look for next week) so you can imagine me trying to change with my body as much in the car as possible without letting anyone see me! And even though church was in session, there were still some cars that drove by. Plus I felt a little funny doing a photo shoot and posing while other people were on their way to church. :P Anywho, I was sort of wishing we could redo the photos. But then I realized something. I need to be normal. My photos won't always be perfect. And I might sometimes have a stress vein in some of them. But this is what we have time for and what fits into our life. And if I want to continue living normal life AND have a blog, I have to do what works for me! I can't always travel to the most awesome locations and wait for the lighting to be just right. Or spend every day going out to do photos for the blog. I need to be present in my life and with the people in my life and not worry to much about not having everything just right! I have to do photos when it fits into my day and just be happy with having content to post! 

Now onto today's look! I wanted to show you something fun you can do with those shirt dresses that are just a little too short to be actual dresses. You can either pair them with jeans or tuck them into your skirt like I did here! So you get two looks for the price of one. I also have paired this top with leather leggings and boots too! So many options and fun ways to style. I also plan on tucking some of my body con dresses into my skirts soon too! Hope you try this trick too!

P.S. My blogger BFF Alena, of Moda Prints, and I have decided to do a 24 hour social media fast from tomorrow morning until Saturday morning. It may sound silly but social media can really be a distraction in our lives! I know I just pick up my phone all the time when I'm bored and sometimes spend too much each day on it when I could be doing other things. I want to be more purposeful with my time and aware of how I spend it, so I'm hoping this little fast will be a kick starter for that. I especially want to be better about my morning devotions and letting that be how I start my day instead of scrolling through my Insta. If you want to, please join us! We will both be doing a blog post on it and how it affected our days and all that. And if you don't join, you can at least follow along by searching #mmsocialmediafast. 

xoxoxo,

Christine