Rainy Days- outfits post

It seems like I usually get around to posting here when it rains. Maybe because my body seems to calm down to the soothing sound of rain, and allows me to think and dream more. It brings out my writer's spirit, I suppose. 

Lately I've been helping with my sister's school, practicing music, running errands, reading a lot, and spending time with my family. I don't want to ever become so busy that I miss out on the opportunities at this time of my life that I may not have in the future. I continue to be my busy bee self, but remind myself to enjoy life, take a break, and spend time with those I love. 

Sadly, Bible College has been on the back burner lately, which is something I hope to change soon. It just seems like every time I pull out my college materials, that I'm suddenly asked to do something or find out we have to go somewhere. I'm going to try to make more of an effort at it though. 

Considering I've lacked inspiration in the outfit department lately, I've been trying to do the outfit challenges on the Modern Modesty Facebook page. It's helped me put together some new outfits, and restarted my creative juices once again. Now, when I look at my closet, I notice things that would go together that I've never put together before. 

Here's the challenge for July. I've been having a lot of fun with it. :)

I had wanted this skirt so bad that I traded a friend of mine for it, but I've had a hard time styling it. Which is really sad, since my favorite color is red. But since then, I've found a few things to go with it. I'll leave that for another post. ;) The shirt is from my mom, originally from Cato, the flats were $3 from Goodwill, and I made the jewelry. It was nice to finally be able to wear this awesome necklace. It feels so Native American to me. 

This one was for the neons on neutrals. I've only ever styled this top with blue or white, and it was always really baggy so I hadn't worn it in a while, even though I really like it. When I saw the undershirt and top next to each other, I knew they'd be great together. I think it brought the top to life, and with tying it, it wasn't so baggy. I can see it being worn a lot more now. :) 

I know it's a horrible picture, but instead of just doing my side pony tail flipped under, I added a braid. I really like it too, it just needs more practice. 

Last Wednesday night I was in nursery, and the challenge was orchid and mint. Now, I have a lot of mint, but I couldn't find any orchid. Then, I remembered my favorite tee. I normally wear my mint hoops with this shirt, but considering I'd be around babies, it didn't seem like a good idea. So I went with the jewelry underneath instead. 

oops! Almost passed up Tuesday's outfit. The challenge was jean and white. At first, I had it all on but the scarf. I do like the minimal look, but it felt too plain. So I added the scarf that I haven't worn in a long time, and really liked how it came together. 

And here's yesterday's outfit. The challenge was boho, and I consider this really my only boho outfit. What makes it boho for me are the earthy tones, nature in the owl and leaves, and the flowy patterned skirt. It's so comfortable that it makes me want to wear more boho. ;) I also was barefoot with a messy bun. 

Which outfit was your favorite? 

The old and the new- outfit post

tee and necklace-gift, flipflops- $2 Walmart, jean skirt- $4 Goodwill, bracelet- $1 at the zoo in Florida.)

I'm trying to get better about taking pictures of my outfits. This was my traveling outfit for Saturday. Extremely casual and comfortable. No makeup, although I did use my curling rods again. I tried to make looser curls. One side came out ok, but the other side was too curly. I'm just experimenting with them until I get it right. :) I love this new tee my mom found for me. 

necklace, earrings, skirt, flipflops- gift, green tee and dot undershirt- Walmart. 

And here's today's outfit. I went grocery shopping and it seemed extra hot today, so I went for, you guessed, it, cool and comfortable. With an exception for the purse, I've had everything else for a long time. But I haven't worn any of it in a while, and never all together. The skirt can be casual or dressed up, but I usually use it as my casual black skirt, and leave my other black skirts for dressier outfits. The necklace was a little dressier than I normally wear to Walmart, but it was the most casual gold necklace I have. I really would like to get a gold monogram necklace one day. 

My hair went into my favorite summer hairstyle, a nice cool, out-of-my-way top knot. It's an especially good hairstyle for third day hair. ;) I've learned to spray my hands with hairspray then smooth them over my hair to keep down all the little hairs that seem to pop up. It's been a really handy trick. 

I'd like to try a series, if I have the time, recreating Pinterest outfits with stuff in my closet. Maybe it would inspire my readers, as well as myself,  with new ways to wear our clothes. What do you think? 

I guess a sort of hair tutorial?

I've never, ever done a hair tutorial, but one of my sweet followers requested it, so I'll try my best. 

You saw this picture in my last post.

I got curling rods yesterday, and tried them for the first time today.

Warning: Coming up are some really and I mean REALLY not good pictures of me. ;) 

Considering I'm not good enough to be able to roll these into my hair and take pictures at the same time, I'm afraid you'll just have to see how they look all in. 

It came with 8 big rods and 12 little rods. I used 6 of the big rods, three on each side, and that worked out great for my hair. 

Second warning of this post: If your family has never seen you in curlers, you may have to suffer being called Princess Lea the whole time the rods are in, like I did. ;) 

So first I washed my hair, conditioned, and lightly towel dried it. Then, I added some leave in hair defrizzer.

(This is the kind I use) 

I used the blowdryer on cool for a little while, but then ended up just letting it air dry. When I took out the rods, it was still pretty wet, so I might need to do things a little differently next time. 

Right before we left, which was a couple hours, I took the rods out. Putting them in and taking them out were super easy which is a huge plus for me. I've never been able to use a curling iron or curlers very well. It probably took me less than three minutes to put them in.

This is what it looked like when I first took them out. I had some weird sideways curls near the front, so I think next time I'm not going to roll those all the way up.

I clipped the front back on either side and liked it much better. I quickly hair sprayed it all and ran out the door.

Five hours later, after being in the heat, humidity, and getting lots of hugs from people, my hair looked like this.

Not too bad, considering. ;) 

So, in case you didn't know, these are my new best friends. :) 

Simple. Light. Comfortable. Easy to travel with. 

And here's the whole process in one collage. They suggest curving the rods into a C shape for best results and to keep it securely in your hair. Although I wouldn't recommend putting the ones by your face the way I did, for before mentioned weird sideways curl. 

Here's an example on another way to use these. 

link


Have you ever tried these before? What's your favorite ways or tools for styling your hair? 

Natural Beauty Goals of 2014

Happy New Year! 

I've been making a lot of plans and goals lately, especially natural beauty related. I've been using coconut oil as my makeup remover, and I must say, I'll never use anything else again. It takes mascara off like it's nothing! I'm afraid I've slacked off quite a bit in my natural remedy experiments, due to how busy I've been over the past couple of months. But I'd like to establish some goals for myself, and see how many I've accomplished by the end of the year. 

Well, here goes!

1. A Healthy body 

I've said it before, I know. I've pretty much come to accept my body for what it is. I'm not trying to, "get skinny" like so many others are planning to try this month. But I do want to build healthier habits. I want to get in the habit of either going for a walk every day or doing some exercises in my room. Use my stretchy band to work out my arms. Drink tons of water. Eat smaller portions. Develop better posture. Those are my goals for a healthier body for this year.

2. Healthy hair

My hair is about this long right now. Thanks to Biotin, it's growing faster than I think it ever has. My hair is also longer than it's been in 3 or 4 years. I always want to grow my hair out long, but then get impatient and cut it. This time, I'm determined to grow it to the length I want.

This is my dream length. My hair is about this color too. I'm trying to keep my hair healthier also. Washing it less with shampoo, doing coconut hair masks and mayo hair masks. I still haven't found a good replacement for regular shampoo that works for me, but I'm still trying. 

3. Healthy teeth

link

"Put a tiny bit of toothpaste into a small cup, mix in one teaspoon baking soda + one teaspoon of hydrogen peroxide and half a teaspoon water. Thoroughly mix then brush your teeth for two minutes. Remember to do it once a week until you have reached the results you want."

Being a big tea and coffee drinker, I have stained teeth. I've done this a few times, and it does truly work wonders. I just need to get back in the habit.

4. Healthy face

baking soda face wash

coconut/coffee grind body scrub

Using coconut oil to re-hydrate skin.

So, those are my areas I'd like to improve on health wise this year. 

Do you have any areas you'd like to change or improve? 

Christmas outfit ideas

How many of you, like me, like to dress up for the occasion? I wear red, white and blue for Fourth of July, Autumn colors for the first day of Autumn and Thanksgiving, sparkles for New Years, pastels for Easter, red or pink for Valentine's Day (even though I don't have a Valentine), and usually red and black for Christmas. But I'd like to try a few new things this year, so I thought I'd share with ya'll some of my ideas and inspirations. 

Christmas outfits by pawpawsgirl92 featuring an open cardigan

I'm going to start from the right and work my way left. This is the outfit I envision for Christmas Day at my grandparent's house. The ivory cowl neck sweater look is classic and has a romantic air. The boots are my usual go to winter shoes. I love the look of them as well as how comfortable they are. If the weather is extra cold, I'd proly put some tights on as well. I thought this hairstyle goes perfectly with the overall look of the outfit. And the dark lipstick completes the romantic look.

The monochrome grey look seems to be really big this year. I haven't tried it yet, but I think this outfit would work out nice with a pop of crimson nail polish.

Now, I said that I normally wear red for Christmas. But this year, I'm trying the bright emerald green. I got a sweater exactly like this one last year after Christmas, only with sparkles and a cowl neckline. I think it would look cute with the edgy but modest leather skirt, and some black heels and grey polish. The girl's simple, yet elegant straight hair and minimal jewelry looks really great. It can also be worn with a jean skirt and tan cowgirl boots, which is how I plan to style it for Christmas day at my relative's house.

Here's a few more inspirations you may like.











So what are you planning to wear for Christmas this year? 

Hiatus 2

Well, here we go again! 

I decided after the last hiatus that it did me so much good that I would do it once a month. I'm looking forward to this week.

But in this last post before my break, let me share with you what I got while shopping yesterday. The Lord blessed me and my mom with some amazing finds. :) 

dress $9 on clearance at Walmart

jean skirt $10 thrift shop

jean skirt $6 thrift shop (originally Old Navy) 

grey wedges $5 thrift shop (originally Payless)

zebra flats $6 thrift shop (originally Cato) 

Pilot pens from Walmart 

I was so happy with all my finds yesterday. I've been eyeing that dress at Walmart for quite a while, waiting for it to go on sale. The jean skirts were a total surprise. Around here, jean skirts are so hard to find. We actually got three jean skirts, my mom got one of them. The grey wedges were just too adorable to pass up. I'm wearing them with my new dress tomorrow. And I've wanted zebra shoes for a long time. The Pilot pens simply make me happy. :) I love writing with them for Bible College. 

Now, are you wondering how my natural experiments have been going? 

I tried three of them last night, and two out of three worked. The one that said brown sugar water straightened your hair without the heat, was a flop. My hair is still wavy, plus being very sticky, and very VERY stiff. I can barely get my brush through it. But the other two worked out much better. I tried this one for teeth whitening, and while it tastes horrid (be sure to add that drop of toothpaste to the mix!) it really did work. I could see a change immediately after brushing my teeth. Then, I tried this one, which is a face mask. I'm so thankful they said NOT to scrub it in. While applying it, I didn't feel anything, but right after, my face started burning. I felt like someone had taken sandpaper to my face! After 30 seconds, I hurried and rinsed it off, but my face felt so bad, I put some lavender lotion on it. Thankfully, that soothed my skin, and I became aware that my teeth and face had never felt cleaner! Those recipes really kick! So, I will be doing both of those again. I still have more experiments I want to try, which some will probably be tried this week. I didn't get coconut oil yet, because it was so expensive, $10 for a small jar. I'm going to check prices at other places first.

Oh, now I have some sad news. I lost my heart ring I made yesterday. :(

I'm really sad about it. I can always make another heart ring, but this was the very first one I made, so it was special. 

While I'm gone this week, be sure to check out Callie's blog, Creations by Callie. She did this post about colors for different skin tones, which I had figured some of it out on my own, but some of her info was new for me. I also love her outfits, and I know you would too. I'm hoping to see more posts from her on the colors topic. 

Have a wonderful week, everyone!