Saturday, December 31, 2011

French Makeup

Hey!  It's Caroline. I've decided that the French style is my absolute favorite.

The French girls look like they just rolled out of bed, threw things on, and left.  There's nothing too "done" about their look, and yet they still look elegant and absolutely stunning.  

Today I filmed a tutorial on the laid back French makeup.  It's all about dewy, clear skin, a slight bit of color to the face, smoked out and messy shadow, dark lashes, and a "bitten" lip look.  

I hope you enjoy!  This was my first time trying to make a real makeup tutorial, so let me know what you think... I'm new to this.  I might do a voiceover next time instead of slides, but we shall see.  If you have any questions about the application, ask me in the comments below and I'll respond!

Happy new year!




-Caro

Friday, December 16, 2011

OOTD: Sweet Sixteen!

Well, hello, ladies! Because today is my birthday, I thought I would show you what I am wearing! A few of the pieces I am wearing actually happen to be gifts which I received at breakfast this morning...Birthdays are the best ever. :)





Also, I will mention that I wanted a dark pink lip but I didn't have the appropriate color of lipstick...Instead, I put on a dark red lipstick, blotted it off, put on a pink lipgloss, then patted a bit of hot pink eyeshadow on the center of my lips! Quick tip for you there! :)

Hope you all are having a fabulous December 16! I certainly am! 

Love,

Valentine

Sunday, December 11, 2011

Transitioning Between Styles 101

All Images Via Pinterest
It's incredibly easy to become "stuck" in one style.  The idea of switching up your look can be a daunting thought.  We all have our reasons for not switching it up when we really want to.  Perhaps you're confused as to what style you "fit" in.  Perhaps you like a lot of things, and you don't really know what your niche is.  Maybe you feel the pressure of staying "you".  Maybe you're afraid of what people will say when they realize you're not wearing the same clothes as you used to.  These are all legitimate worries!  It's not simple to transition into a new style.  Here are some tips to make it a little bit easier.

1.  Don't feel like you have to label yourself.

When switching styles, it is common to feel like you have to switch your vocabulary as well as your wardrobe.  "I used to be preppy, now I'm boho." These terms are useless.  You are not a style, you are a human being with your own distinct sense of what you believe to be attractive or unattractive.  If you like plaid skirts AND maxi dress, that's okay.  You don't need to classify yourself and force yourself to stay there.  One of the most wonderful things about fashion is it's diversity.  Exploring and incorporating are key to finding things you like.  Chances are you won't like all of the things in your genre, and chances are you will like things outside of your genre.  The best way to avoid confusion in this area is to not sort yourself into a genre at all.  


2. Keep your "old style" clothes.

Your wardrobe is not a folder on your computer you can delete and create a new one in seconds.  Keep the clothing you own, because, well, you need clothing.  You'd also be surprised how often you can incorporate your previous style of clothing into your new style.  Accessories most importantly!  Jazzing up your old clothes is a great way to get more use out of them.  Your closet is like an artist's paint palette, there are different staples, or colors, and separately, they all look one dimensional.  But when you start to paint, or in this case pair your clothes together, the picture comes out much differently than the palette looks.

3.  Make the transition slowly.

Don't go from a sweats and a tshirt to an Audrey Hepburn look-a-like in one day.  This will both distract other people, and wear you thin.  If you're not used to dressing the way you desire for your new style, take it slowly.  Incorporate small changes into your clothing.  A great place to start is a hair cut, or new lipstick.  Small changes go a long way, in the end.  It will also attract less attention.  People's comments were something that really hindered me when changing my style.  Good or bad, I was worried about people's remarks.  If you make the transition slowly, people will barely notice.

4.  Stay inspired.

It's easy to fall into the slump of "I can't do this, I don't know anything about style or fashion".  Read up on your favorite fashion magazines.  Scroll through Pinterest.  Read your favorite fashion blogs.  You'll find it a lot easier to create outfits when you're constantly finding new ideas.

5.  Know what you do and don't like.

"It's just not me" is a perfectly acceptable answer.  Be able to distinguish your own personal preferences.  This goes back to number one,  don't force yourself to like a trend because "it's in my style".  For example, perhaps you really love the hipster style, but you think that those famous glasses look ridiculous.  Don't wear them.  Don't try to make yourself like them.  Don't classify yourself.  Just like something for the sake of your own personal opinion.

6.  Know what looks good on you.

Some trends just don't work for certain body types.  This isn't your fault.  Every body type is capable of looking good!  Don't be discouraged if you don't look like the manikin, because no one does.  For more information on what your body type is, and what you can wear, try out Caroline's Flattering Trends series.  She talks about what body type you are, and what will look good on you.  Be proactive and read up on your body type before shopping-  it saves from a lot of useless aggravation.

Finally,

7. Change for you.

Don't change your style to impress other people.  Stick with what you love.  Dressing to impress is frustrating.   The most important thing about fashion is remembering that everything you wear reflects who you are.  Style is an extension of yourself, as Kate so wonderfully put in her introduction post.  Not only does style reflect who you are, but what you stand for.  As a Christian young lady, it reflects your God.  That's why modesty and beauty are such important things in the life of a Christian.  Don't wear clothes that you feel pressured into wearing by the media, or by your friends.  Dress the way you feel, the way you think.  If you ask for people's input on your outfits, always take it with a grain of salt.  First, ask if it's modest.  If it's appealing, and yet still reflective of your character and of your God.  A mother, or best friend, or a sibling will always tell you the truth about this.  If you want someone's opinion on if they like it or not, brace yourself.  Don't feel like they have to agree with you, or you have to agree with them. It's okay to wear something that someone else doesn't particularly like the style of.  If you like it, and it is pleasing to your God, wear it.  Don't worry about the opinions of Hollywood or of other people.

So if you're thinking about making that change of style, do it!  Try it out.  Style is never set in stone.  You can wear something completely opposite tomorrow if you like.  Play around, make mistakes, experiment!  Have fun with your wardrobe, and wear what makes you feel lovely.

xx,
Emilyann

Monday, December 5, 2011

Natural Contouring




Sup, people?  It's Caro.  Contouring is tricky business!  It's hard to get that defined face shape we like, but I'm going to do my best to show you how and still look natural.

If you look at the pictures above, you can't really see the contouring.  That's the point!  Beware muddy brown lines under your cheekbones.  That may make your cheeks look prominent, but it will also make you look like you don't really know what you're doing.  We're young.  Natural, glowy finishes are what we want.

So I'm going to take these pictures and edit them to show you exactly where I put my bronzer, highlighter, and blush.  You'll be surprised!





Attractive, right?  I know.  Hot.

Anyway, this is just to show you roughly where I put my contouring.

Step 1:  Take a bronzer a few shades darker than your skin (cream bronzer is the most natural) and apply it under the cheekbones, right above the jaw line, down the sides of the nose, and up around your forehead down into your temples.

Step 2:  Use your favorite highlighter (shimmery ones are my personal favorite) and put it on the tops of your cheekbones, on your chin, on the bridge of your nose, on the center of your forehead, and right at the top sides of your nose.  You can even put a little dab on your cupid's bow above your lip if you're into the plump lip look.

Step 3:  If you're using cream products, blend out with a bit of your foundation (but if you do this, don't put on a whole face of foundation first.  Start with the contouring and THEN blend with your foundation).  If you're using powders, dust a bit of translucent powder onto a stiff kabuki brush and just blend, blend, blend.  For difficult areas, you can use your fingers to really work it out.

Step 4:  Use a pink blush and lightly blend it onto your cheekbones.  Don't smile and put it on the apples of your cheeks, because this messes with the shape we're creating.  Just sort of blend it into the area where the highlighter and bronzer meet.

And that's it.  If you go all out, this can be time consuming.  But the more you do it, the quicker you get.

Good luck!  Comment below if you have any questions and I'll be sure to answer.  Just.... don't leave the house with brown stripes all over your face and tell everyone I told you how to do it.  BLEND, BLEND, BLEND!!

Love,
Caroline

(And just for fun because I'm a fangirl)

Sunday, December 4, 2011

Let the winter come. It is the only path to Spring.



Oh Hi! Remember me?  We used to hang out alot but then I got busy.
And abandoned you. It wasn't for lack of affection, I promise. Senior year is just like one long ridiculous ride on those tea cup things at disney world. I.E. blogging gets pushed to the back of the list..... alot. But! I am here now so lets get started. Its December. Say what! Where did the year go? Thats about what I'm feeling like anyway. December however, has it perks. Christmas being the primary one of course. But besides that its also the perfect month to wear a velvet blazer. This one's my new obsession. It was a Christmas gift last year but the problem with receiving awesome wonderful wintery presents on Christmas is  that (at least in TN) winter is half way over. So you have dream about wearing that lovely royal blue velvet jacket all year round until in finally gets cold and appropriate enough to wear it. Ladies the time has finally come. So I'm enjoying it to the fullest. And yes I do realize this entire post practically has been about my love affair with this jacket. I'm ok with that. Its worth it. But if it makes you feel any better I have a more insightful/informative post planned for next week. Plus I think its good to every now and then just delight in the little things that make us feel feminine. I call this my Dickens jacket because it reminds me of that time period... Is that weird? 

Oh and my hair was doing its own thing today. I don't even want to talk about it. So I won't. Just enjoy the jacket.    =)










Skirt, Ruffled Blouse, and Dickens Jacket: Talbots
Knee Highs: Target
Leather Ankle Boots: Vintage
Crimson Nail Polish: OPI

Laugher and Song
Elizabeth