LIFESTYLE: Family Weekend + Shopping Haul

As the weekend is upon us once again, I've gotten a little sad about the slump in plans. Looking forward, I have great plans to visit my boyfriend for the 4th of July holiday weekend, and last weekend was an absolute blast because my mom and grandma made the 7 hour drive just for two days with me. I have the best family :)

1. The most amazing blueberry almond oatmeal. I'm normally not a big fan of blueberries, but this might have converted me. The best part? The restaurant is just 15 minutes from my house.

2. My goodies from the weekend. I went a little shopping crazy after actually having people to get out and about with for the first time in a long while.

3. The magazines I picked up for 50% off! You best believe I'll be reading these cover to cover and then using them for an inspiration board + two new lip products (more on those to come later)

4. I let out my inner gypsy with a satin open shoulder peasant top and dangle earrings. I've recently become obsessed with fun earrings. Maybe it's because it's getting to be too hot for statement necklaces.

We had the best time doing touristy things around the area I'm living, showing them where I've been working the last month, and just sitting down and enjoying each other's company. I didn't realize how much I would miss them! It makes me appreciate the time I do have that much more now.

PS- I struggled with where to "categorize" this post. The great thing about categories is that it makes blog planning super easy. I can assign a category to a day of the week and my life is so much simpler! The only snag is when random posts pop up that I want to blog, but don't fit neatly anywhere. So while this may not be a traditional "lifestyle" post, I'm just taking a deep breath and realizing not EVERYTHING has to tuck away neatly. Baby steps.

xoxo, Katie

OOTD: Terribly Awkward and Uneventful Milestones

Top- Thrifted

Jeans- Hollister

Shoes- Giveaway prize

Watch- Express

Necklace- Thrifted

Somehow I've come to this 2-year anniversary of blogging and I still haven't figured out how to pose adequately in front of a tripod. 

That's right, it's somehow come to be two whole years since I've started this little guy. Where does the time go? If it was a baby it would be walking, talking, and learning to pee in a toilet by now. (ok that was a little unnecessary, sorry)

So while this blog might not be out of diapers yet (ie, I'm not internet famous), I really do enjoy sharing content and thoughts. It's a great outlet for me, and maybe it's better that companies aren't emailing me about being sponsored or doing promos or anything else of that nature. Without all of that, I'm free to post whatever I'm really thinking about or feeling. I don't have to worry about deadlines or required content or legalities.

That isn't to say that I wouldn't love to have all those perks. Companies, don't hesitate to email me, because even though I just spent an entire paragraph bitching, I'm more than happy to take those "downfalls" and turn them into positives. I'm a very "glass half full" type of person.

So this is really just a random post to celebrate having made it this far without giving up yet. I don't have a fancy giveaway to offer my readers (we have to remember that I'm a poor college student/intern), I want to make sure that you readers know how much I appreciate you. I can't be completely selfless and say that I don't partially do this because I love hearing back from everyone. It's one of the major perks of blogging, and I'm forever grateful to those who have stayed around, and I can't wait to see who comes along in the next to years.

Cheers to you, blog.

xoxo, Katie

BEAUTY: The Do's and Don'ts of Washing Your Brushes

Now, I can't claim to be an expert on all things makeup brushes, because let's face it- I'm horrible at remembering to clean them. I'm lucky if I take the time to clean then once every six months. I know, I know...but lately I've been much better about it, and there are a few hard and fast rules that are easy enough to stick to.

1. Do use a gentle soap.

 I used Neutrogena's Gentle Foaming Face Wash to clean mine, but even baby shampoo works well. Just make sure it isn't loaded with harsh chemicals or heavy perfumes.

2. Don't pull at the bristles.

While you're washing it can be tempting to pull at the bristles while washing or rinsing. Instead, swirl the brush into the soap in the palm of your hand and gentle separate the bristles while rinsing- but only if you absolutely have to. If you can, just let the water run through.

3. Do rinse your brushes thoroughly.

Leaving soap residue in the bristles can irritate your face and leave the brushes harsh after they dry. Don't hesitate to double rinse, just in case.

4. Don't let your brushes sit in water.

I learned this back in high school with actual painting brushes. Letting them soak in water will loosen the glue that holds the bristles in, and will also loosen the head of the brush from the handle. Simply hold your brushes under running water to rinse them

5. Do let your brushes dry completely before using them again.

Using wet brushes will not only make the makeup cake into the brushes, but it will ruin whatever you're trying to apply! Make sure you won't need a specific brush the next day if you're washing them at night, because my more dense brushes took at least 24 hours to completely dry.

6. Don't blow dry/fan/spread out the bristles.

I'm not sure why you would ever blow dry a makeup brush, but I've watched a friend attempt it! As for the fanning and spreading of the bristles, it may seem like they will dry faster, but in reality it will just cause your brushes to loose their shape, and you'll end up with a bunch of brushes with giant blobs for bristles. 

7. Do listen to your face.

That sounds a little strange, but pay attention to what your face is telling you. If it hurts or your skin becomes red after using a brush, it might be time to bite the bullet and buy a new one. If your face has been breaking out recently and nothing in your routine has changed, it might be a sign that your brushes need a good scrubbing.

8. Don't over-think it.

I know when I washed my brushes for the first time I was super intimidated for some reason. It was probably just because I had never attempted it before, but no matter the reason it lead me to put it off. Don't! Worst case senerio is you ruin a brush and have to buy a new one- so start with the cheap ones first, haha.

xoxo, Katie

OOTD: I'm a Grown Up

Sweater- H&M

Blouse-H&M

Jeans- Gap

Watch- Vintage

Heels- Target

Necklace- Thrifted

I'm writing this in my delusional late night stupor, but I knew that if I didn't force myself to get back into a schedule then I'd go another month without posting anything regularly.

This outfit just seems very...adult? I mean, layering a button up shirt and a sweater is more than enough maturity for me. So adding polka-dots seemed like the most logical solution to avoiding adulthood and trying to fly to Neverland. 

Sorry for the very short wordage. I just can't force my eyes open any longer. They're starting to do that very annoying and painful burning/prickling thing, which means I better listen for once.

xoxo, Katie

OOTD: Sophisticated Graphics

Tank- Nordstrom

Pants- H&M

Vest- Bill Blass

Heels- H&M

So this summer, CollegeFashionista assigned me to style MYSELF for my posts each week. I thought, "this is great! It's going to be a piece of cake considering I do that already!" Wrong. So wrong. Taking pictures by myself with my tripod is much more difficult than I anticipated. The focus is almost always off, the lighting is hard to set, and running back and forth to check the angles and set the timer just get annoying after two shots. I really should invest in a camera remote. Any suggestions?

On another note, this outfit was inspired by Burberry's s/s 2014 runway shows where they paired graphic t-shirts with dress pants. Fancy, huh? Well considering I really own very few graphic t-shirts (I had to dig through my closet to even find this one), I threw on a denim vest to dress it down even more. So what's the verdict- are we feeling it? I'm a fan, I think. I'm probably going to at least actually buy a shirt that doesn't look like it was attacked by wolverine after this.

xo, Katie

OOTD: I'm Back...To The Basics

So I probably don't have to tell anyone that it's been more than a MONTH since my last post. What in the actual heck? More than anything, I hate those little catch up blog posts about why people have been gone, and blah blah blah- or actually, I just hate writing them. You'd think that might be an incentive to not go prolonged periods without blogging. Apparently it isn't. Either way, I'm not going to bore you with an entire post of that, and I'll keep it short and sweet with a little list:

1. Finished my junior year of college
2. Moved back home
3. Moved AGAIN three weeks later
4. Started my internship at Lands' End

Condensing it all to 4 short bullet points makes it seem much less hectic, but I swear I haven't just been lazy. In addition to starting a 40 hours a week internship, I've also been taking an online class AND continuing my CollegeFashionista internship. Whew! This outfit below is actually just left over shots from my bio on their site, but I liked them much better than the ones I ended up choosing. Some of their guidelines for our photos are pretty rigid, so I can't get too wild. *aka- be goofy or stupid (which is basically my life 27/7)*

Tank- H&M

Jeans- Old Navy

Flats- J.Crew

Backpack- Thrifted

Jewelry- Old

Speaking of CollegeFashionista, they were so incredibly kind to hook me up with The Huffington Post, and this past Wednesday I had a style article published with them- say whaaat?! You can read it here if you want to make me feel famous :)

So bear with me as I transition back into writing for myself. When you do it for a job, it's a little more difficult to use it as a release, but I'm realizing that just rambling is theraputic, and no one is paying me to do that any time soon so I better make it fun. Hopefully you all can expect posts with a little more regularity now that I'm settling into my apartment and job- I don't want to lose my internet blogging street cred, ya know.

xoxo, Katie