White Girl Problems

Would you mind if I take a moment to comment on how many posts I have done on my hair...like geez, do I have anything else to talk about?!?
Guess not...

Anyways, while mingling with a few of my friends, my BFF made a side comment to our buddy, Lindsey, about her hair and how long it has gotten.
That's when she said those three amazing words, "Girl, that's fake."
Soon after I was flooded with memories of my own weave glory days.

Cue dreamy interlude.

Believe it or not, I had permanent hair extensions at one point, and to be honest, I felt like a Kardashian for a short period of time. But eventually I took them out because it was just too much upkeep. Plus my already thick hair felt like a horse tail whenever I stepped out of the shower.

Long hair, don't care...errr, kinda. 

And FYI this was taken during sorority recruitment when we wear bright scrubs for philanthropy night, no big deal.

Soon afterward I saw on a few blogs who shared stories of weave admiration, and the itch for longer hair hit me again. (Granted I have always loved long hair, but I seriously fried it with my hair styling. Gals, short, healthy hair is prettier than stringy, fried hair.)

 Short hair, don't care...nope, that's a lie, I did care. I missed my long locks. 

Oh, and check out the classy natty light in the background...oh the joys of tailgating.

Because of this blog, I even made my own clip in extensions that I wore time to time, and after seeing my pal's awesome locks, I ran home and dug the weave out of storage.

And low and behold, guess what happened.
I clipped those suckers in...and my hair is now the same length as the deadgum extensions.

Crazy how your hair will grow if you don't pay attention to it...

I don't know if I should be ecstatic that all those prenatal vitamins finally took a hit on my hair or pissed that I can no longer wear my weave for extra length.

no extensions...all natural.

Grrr....

xoxo,
 

Shameless Birthday Wish List

Now that the big quarter century mark is less than a month away, Cory has been asking me quite a lot about what I want for my upcoming birthday. 
I've told him I wanted to be surprised this year, and Lord love him, but he has freaked out over that request.  
So I told him to use his "resources."
And Lord help him, if he thinks to look at the blog, well then, honey dear, you found the jackpot. 


So without further adieu, here's my shameless wish list post...

1.

Tory Burch Reva Clutch with gold hardware

I've seen a couple of gals carrying this bag, and ever since then, I've fallen in love. 
2.

Tory Burch Revas

I'm on a TB Reva kick, can you tell? 
I've never owned a pair, but I can wear the crap out of some flats come winter time.
3.

Birchbox Subscription 

Enough said.
4.

Game of Thrones box set

I've watched the first season on HBO and loved it...now on to the books.

 5.

Wouldn't it be nice to see a new blog design around here?

...more specifically from Lulapalooza.
 6.

House of Harlow 1960's Jordana sunglasses
Oh, man, how adorable are these! Love the mod gradient effect.

xoxo,

 

Hippie Hair

Speaking of my hair routine, some of the time I will be out of whack and too tired to mess with my hair.

Case in point last night when I fell asleep with a towel still on head from the shower.

I woke up to only what I can consider as hippie hair.

I suggest y'all all try it. Your alarm clock and your hair (no heat, people!) will thank you later.

xoxo,
 

The Full Monty

I've always heard of a coveted European nail polish called Butter London from various UK bloggers I follow on YouTube. 
So imagine my surprise when I come across a display of it the other day when I ran into Ulta.

Because I fell in love with some Sally Hansen nail stickers that had a similar effect, I was drawn to The Full Monty color right away. 
I honestly tried to find something similar in OPI and Essie when I saw it, but what I loved about this product is the glittery metallic finish isn't grainy and didn't appear like it will be difficult to take off like nail polishes I've purchased in the past.

I took it with me for a much needed manicure, and requested three coats since it went on so sheer. I think next time I may just stick to one or two, or I may layer it over a taupe color since it's so blinging.

I know none of my photos are going to do it justice, but I think you get the idea.
I really think this will be a pretty color to wear coming up in the fall. 
Neutral with an edge, I'd like to say.

What are some other polish colors y'all are looking forward to wearing in the fall?

xoxo,
 

Typical 4 Day Hair

I get a lot of questions referring to why I go so long between shampoos.

Once I explain that:
1. yes, I do in fact take showers without washing my hair (I'm not gross...),
2. it's mostly to keep my hair from drying out from constant washing, and
3. it takes so flipping long to blow dry

then the next question I get is...

"Well, how in the heck do you DO it?"

Simple.

Cue cheesy self portraits...

Day 1

Fresh Out of the Shower Blowout

This is the day I will spent the most effort on simply because my hair is so freaking time consuming to dry. I'll even let my hair air dry up to 30 minutes just to cut down the drying time.

 spray Redken Guts Volume Foam in roots

moisturize using Moroccan Oil Hydrating Styling Cream on ends
blow dry with Hot Tools blow dryer using a 4 inch round brush
before my hair cools, I use velcro rollers to set face pieces

Day 2 
Maintain What's Left of My Blowout

this day is pretty simple.
I brush out my mane with a paddle brush
it's probably going to be slightly/very wavy from sleep, just depends
tease the roots
small dab of Moroccan Oil Hydrating Cream for ends
NO HEAT
that's how I ruined my hair the for the majority of my life...consistent use of heat tools
sometimes I can find that half of my head is wavy while the other side is still straight 
on days like this, I may rock a ponytail or braid to keep it from being too noticeable
...anything to keep me from using my straightener.

Day 3  
Curls, Curls, Curls

Conair 1 and 1/4 inch curling iron
 teasing comb for roots
Freeze It hairspray
The hairspray is not so much for hold but more for shine control

Day 4
Loose "Lauren Conrad" Waves

 hair brush...that's it.
obviously this is my favorite day :)

Shampoo and repeat.

Now some things to chat about - everyone has different hair.
Both my mom and sister wash their hair daily and believe that they have to in order not to have a greasy scalp.
For me, if I wash my hair everyday, I will have to use heat on it every day...and anyone who saw how I fried my hair years ago will tell you not to use heat on your hair. I literally had to cut 2+ inches at every hair appointment for a year just to get it back to being healthy.

So the moral of the story is to try it out.
It may be for you, and may change your whole hair routine.
Or you may cuss me out for even suggesting the idea.
It's whatever.

xoxo,

 

When is it safe to take the word "blog" off of the phrase "I'm going to go hang out with my blog buddies?"

Blog buddies.
The term of endearment that I use when referring to the multiple ladies I have met through the dear ole blog.
Last night a few of us had dinner and talked and talked and talked...Lord, we ladies like to chat.

But in all seriousness, I thank this blog every time I think of these quirky, amazing, and influential women.
Plus, they laugh at my jokes.

xoxo,
 

Shellac Nails

I went out and finally got a shellac manicure.
I can definitely see where everyone is getting their addiction from.

I wanted my first shellac to be something classic so I chose the baby pink color. 
I've had this manicure since Saturday, and let me tell you, it held it's own at work where I normally find my nails chipped to bits. 
Plus the zero dry time is pretty amazing.


xoxo,
 

Birthday Girl

No, not mine.
Aspen's.

Baby girl is three today, and that means three treats from Three Dog Bakery were all hers to enjoy. (Was that enough 3's in one sentence for y'all?)

If y'all have one, I would seriously go check it out.
I thought Aspen was going to inhale my hand when I gave it to her.

xoxo,
 

Dear Photograph

Have y'all read the blog Dear Photograph?
If you haven't, you should.

How neat is this?
Now excuse me as I go shuffling through all my old photographs and try to place them in the present.

xoxo,
 

Denim Underwear

Nope, the creators of "pajama jeans" are not introducing a new product...
This is a term I coined for the too short shorts epidemic I've seen in shopping malls, sidewalks, and in nearly every teen's wardrobe.
You know you have seen them before...

Cute, but these aren't the outfits we commonly see when referring to denim underwear.

This is the kind of denim underwear I've been referring to...

Trust me...you don't want me to post other photos I found that would be filed as denim underwear.
With that being said, I know it's flipping 400 degrees outside, but we should all agree that this needs to stop.

xoxo,
 

Dogeared & Catbird

I cannot believe I haven't written this post yet but anywho.
My love runs deep for tiny jewelry.
Sure I have a chunky statement necklace that I wear maybe twice a year, but these are items I wear daily...sometimes to the point I forget to take them off.

First up is my collection of Dogeared necklaces.
I cannot begin to tell you how many compliments I get over these simple charms.

 1. A fluer de lis from Cory for my love of New Orleans

2. three wishes I bought to represent my college days

3. A pink pearl that I received as a bridesmaid

Next up on my wish list is the Can I Get a Whoot Whoot owl necklace.

Now this is something I've been lusting over.

Holy crap, how precious are these Alphabet Rings. 
And ironically coming from a company named Catbird.

What are some jems that you love?

xoxo,
 

Word.

"Living a great love story doesn’t look like winning the lottery, it looks like training for a marathon. It’s hard work and you have to do the work long before you ever meet Mr. Right, otherwise you’ll be the girl who shows up for the marathon having eaten a gallon of ice cream every night, listening to Taylor Swift songs and watching love stories about vampires. No good man can run with that girl, not for much longer than a mile."

- great article from Donald Miller

xoxo,