Thursday, May 8, 2014

Influenster VoxBox Review

I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.
My make up was packaged all beautifully in the box. I had already thrown away the little boxes they were in. Oops!

This is everything that came in the box. 
-Mary Kay Catalog
-A card explaining how to use everything that was in the box
-Mary Kay Bronzing Powder
-Mary Kay Translucent Loose Powder
-Mary Kay Mineral Cheek Color
-Mary Kay Cream Eye Color in Apricot Twist
-Mary Kay Eye Color/Concealer Brushes
-Mary Kay Lash Love Mascara
-Mary Kay Gel Eyeliner with Expandable Brush Applicator in Jet Black
-Mary Kay NouriShine Plus Lip Gloss in Mango Tango

From the eye products, I really love everything except for the apricot twist cream eye color. It didn't show up very well on my eyes. I absolutely LOVE the mascara. It makes my eyelashes look so full and dark. I'm still not a pro with the gel eyeliner, but I do like it. I just need more practice. And I love the feel of the brush. It's very high quality. 
I love the powders and the lip gloss! The translucent powder is absolutely amazing. The bronzer is perfect for my skin color right now, and same with the blush. It even gives this amazing shimmer in the light. The lip gloss isn't sticky like most glosses are. I was pretty nervous to try an orangey toned gloss, but it turned out pretty nice! And the brush is very high quality and soft. It applies my make up very smooth. 


And some pictures of my look after using the makeup! Sorry they aren't the best quality-they were taken with my iphone while I was playing outside with Pipah. If you want to join Influenster let me know! I have a few invites left :)

xoxo
Chels




Wednesday, May 7, 2014

Bridals by J. Taylor Photography (Jalene Taylor)


































Dress: Allyse's Bridal | Veil: David's Bridal (I used 2 veils) | Jewelry: Dillards | Shoes: Kate Spade (similar)

I absolutely LOVE my bridal pictures. I think I look through them every day. Jalene did such a fabulous job, and she was really fun to work with. I am so glad I did bridals because it was like a test run before the wedding day. I could make sure that I absolutely loved how my hair, makeup, and flowers were. And thank goodness because I wasn't a huge fan of my bridal flowers. They were pretty, but they weren't exactly what I was envisioning. I'll post my wedding pictures soon so you can see the difference. My sister in law did my make up. She is a make up guru. It was fun to have her do it, and I wish I could have her do my make up every day! The best part about bridals is that it's not a crazy busy day, and you get nice photos in your wedding attire. I'm so glad I did bridals with Riley because I was so sick on my wedding day and everything was just really crazy and under a time crunch. Now that I look back on my bridal session, these are some of the best tips I received, and wished I would have known.

1. Bring make up for touch ups

2. Don't walk around in your shoes (you'll ruin them before the big day!)

3. Take pictures by the place where you are getting married (It saves a lot of time on your wedding day, and it's normally not busy in the late afternoon.)

4. Order your bridal bouquet and use it in your pictures. If you don't like it-you can change it before your wedding day!

5. Send your photographer pictures that you like, but remember your pictures aren't going to turn out exactly how the picture is. Just know that they are for a reference.

6. Help your groom! I wish I would have made Riley laugh more-he doesn't like to get his pictures taken so he was a little uncomfortable.

7. Go to different locations. You'll be glad that you have a wide array of pictures to choose from.

8. Have fun!

9. Don't be a penny pincher on a photographer. If anything this is my most important tip. Your pictures are with you for forever. And if you decide to just go with someone with a "nice" camera, you're not going to get great quality pictures. Make sure you research, look at portfolios, and ask questions. I had been following Jalene for almost 4 years. I loved every single wedding she did and I knew I had to use her for my photographer. I made sure that when I laid my budget out, that I would be able to afford her. Best decision I ever made.

10. Get fake eyelashes. Okay I know this is a silly one, but seriously-if you are EVER going to get fake eyelashes...do it for your bridal/wedding pictures. Not only do they make you feel 100% prettier, but they make your eyes pop more. And make sure you do research on your eyelash lady. Ask around and follow their social media sites. You never want to go to someone who just claims that they know how to do eyelashes. Not only can they ruin your real eyelashes, but your fake eyelashes won't last as long and they can look awful too.

xoxo
Chels

Tuesday, May 6, 2014

Weekends with Pipah







Picture overload right?! I'm sorry-I can't help myself! Ever since we got Pipah, I have been so excited to play with her outside once it got warmer and she got bigger. This weekend we took her to grandma's (Riley's mom's house), and we played with Pipah outside for hours. She absolutely loved it! It was so cute to watch her prancing around in the grass. She has also started to learn how to fetch. Sometimes she gets distracted, but she still sort of grasps the concept. My nephew Beckett LOVES Pipah. He knows how to say dog and ball so obviously he was in heaven. We had such a fun time being outside in the warm weather. I hope it's like that again this weekend!
xoxo
Chels