Sunday, September 28, 2014

Tips To Save Money On Your Wedding♡


Sometimes when the subject of how beautiful my wedding comes up, there's always that question of, "how much did you spend?" When I tell them I spent under $2,000, they tend to not believe me! So I'm gonna tell you some tips to cutback on all the expenses, but still leaving room to spend money on things you think are the most important on your special day.

First thing is, what's going to be your theme? Any theme can vary in expenses, but I had always wanted a vintage theme wedding since I was little. Pick a theme you can look back on in twenty years and still be satisfied with.

source

Wedding Venue. This will probably be one of your most important decisions for your whole wedding. Think, will it fit my theme? Will my guests enjoy it here? Is there enough room for my number of guests? I chose the Beaty Orton House in Jasper, TX. (Our hometown) It has a very vintage look to it, as well as in the interior. So I wouldn't have to put up too much decor. I wanted my ceremony outside in the backyard underneath the trees. I only spent about $250 on our venue because we only needed to rent out about six hours.

Guests. How many guests are you wanting to invite? This is the biggest thing that can be more costly. The more people you have attend, the more likely the cost will be for you. I just wanted a small group of people with close friends and family and preferred it that way, with the cost or not.

Wedding Invites. Here's another thing you can cut costs on. Why spend hundreds of dollars when you can just make them yourself? I swear I must've only spent $20 on all of them. I chose to do postcards and found a free site here and used that exact one. When you do postcards you cut out the costs of envelopes as well as stamps. Just look for a free invite online that fits your theme and BAM! It's that easy! I couldn't have been happier with how ours turned out!

FREE is your best friend. Do you know how many free printables there are on the internet? A TON. I printed out and made my own fans for guests, ect! There's a lot of free ones here that I used myself.


The Dress. This was my biggest purchase for my whole wedding. I wanted to look/feel beautiful in a dress on my special day as well as have great pictures to look back on and who knows, what if I have a little girl one day who wants to try on her momma's wedding dress? I got my dress with my mom and had one of those mother/daughter moments in a wedding gown at David's Bridal. Can you believe it was the first dress I put on? As soon as I put it on, I knew it was the one. It was vintage looking, long train, lace and even had a keyhole back that I always pictured having. We both cried as soon as I walked out of that dressing room. It was everything and more!


The cakes. My pastor's wife made both of my cakes from scratch. Keeping in mind my theme. Helps knowing people! I got a big discount on both of my cakes, and they were extra special because she has been making my birthday cakes since I was young. So see if you know anyone who makes cakes and does a good job, you never know!

The help of friends and family. This is the most important thing I can tell you. Have friends/family bring food. Help with pouring drinks, ect. My dad set up and took down all of the chairs we used outside for the ceremony and he loved being able to help. My mom made sure to make some of her special foods. It all helps, little by little. I wouldn't have got to have the wedding of my dreams without the people who pitched in and helped.

Don't over stress. I see people all the time who plan a wedding for over a year. It's good to have enough time to get everything done but I did most of everything within the last month leading up to the wedding. Make check lists and reservations for chairs/tables and anything you know you can't get last minute.

Traditions. Will the groom's side pay for the dinner rehearsal? If so, let them! Don't be afraid to let the groom's side help out. They're just as important as the bride's side! It feels more special when both parties help with the wedding coming together. It's a good way for them to know each other more, and will be easier on your part.


Pictures. Let's be honest. Photographers are expensive. Especially for a wedding. I didn't have the funds so I just got my Aunt to take pictures as well as my sister-in-law. I have so many pictures since I did that, a lot more than I would've gotten with a photographer. I enjoy editing photos and didn't mind editing my wedding ones at all. Just make sure to step out during the after party and take some special ones with your groom. Like a normal photographer would. I treasure all my photos from my wedding!

Something might go wrong. No one's perfect, something might not turn exactly how you pictured it. I left my petticoat at home and had to have my dad make a quick run to my house to get it before the wedding started. The thing is to focus on what all the good things are happening, even the smallest good things will be precious. Your flower girl might be walking around during your ceremony, but looking adorable while doing it. Treasure everything because it'll go by so fast. Don't dwell on things you have no control over and enjoy y'all's day!


Well, there's some of my top tips and tricks about saving some money/time on a nice wedding. I think anything can be special and made into what you make it. We eloped right after Steven finished his basic training in San Antonio before we even had this wedding with our friends and family. Even though we had a lovely wedding with everyone, the most important thing is you and your future husband. What you both want with each other. I'll always cherish running off and getting married like we always said we would when I was fourteen.


Maybe one day I'll make a post on us eloping? Here's a little sneakpeak.

Until next time friends! Hoped this helped a little!

Wednesday, September 24, 2014

The TaeTiSeo♡


OnStyle has a new show called The TaeTiSeo! Which is three members from SM's most popular girl group, SNSD. It's a show similar to Jessica's and Krystal's reality show that I loove!

I've been loving watching Tiffany, Taeyeon and Seohyun together. I love seeing their outfits they choose as well as their personalities off stage! I try to stay as patient as possible for the next english sub to come out on YouTube. If you love SNSD, definitely don't miss out watching it!



The girls also have another mini album 'Holler'! I've been rewatching their 'Holler' music video so much! TTS has done it again! The MV was beyond perfect!



Until next time!~

Sunday, September 21, 2014

Homesick Remedies♡


Hey guys! I thought I'd give a few tips on how to get over being homesick. Moving twenty-eight hours away from my family and friends has been one of the hardest things I've had to do, but also very rewarding. I can speak from experience that moving away from your loved ones really grows you as a person and makes you, in my case, really grow up fast. You won't be depending on anyone anymore and it can be very scary to think about, but here's some tips I used to cope.

Find hobbies. Remember how you've always been meaning to pick up sewing? Or how about getting back into your old hobbies? I know I've picked up sketching again!

Take a walk, explore. The best way to get used to a new area is to explore. Make the new, the familiar. Go out and see new sites and make sure to know what's out there.

Make new friends. This is probably the hardest for me to do. You really have to put yourself out there to meet people. Especially if you're like me and moved somewhere where you didn't know anyone.

Call, stay connected to your loved ones. Thank goodness we don't live in the stone age anymore. Make use of your phone and other social sites to stay connected back home. I'm guilty of calling my mom once a day. Even if it's for a few short minutes!

Make your new home cozy. For a while we just had a big, empty house. It felt cold, unfamiliar and scary at times. Once we started adding a few things here and there, it became ours. Having a few familiar items from back home helps too.

Read a book or get into a new tv series. I have a goal where I finish at least one new book a month since I've been living here. I also have gotten into a lot of tv series! It's good 'me' time.

Keep a good mindset. Try your best not to focus on missing home, being lonely. Keep a positive outlook and keep going. I try to always focus on the good, the positive.

Stay busy! This is probably one of the most important things to keep from being homesick. Keeping busy will help you get used to your new home quicker. Staying busy to me, makes me a lot happier.

Wednesday, September 17, 2014

DIY Makeup Brush Cleaner♡

Cleaning your makeup brushes can cost a good bit of money when you have to clean them pretty often. This is an easy DIY you can do at home to clean and disinfect your makeup brushes for way less!


Here's what you're going to need:
1. 1 tablespoon of vinegar
2. 1 tablespoon of dish soap
3. Warm/hot water

That's it! You're ready to start!


As you can see, the water instantly starts to clean the brushes. Swish the brushes around and leave them in there for 4-5 minutes. If you have a lot of makeup brushes like me, pour out and mix up a new batch when the water gets too dirty. Makeup brushes for your face always end up making the water extra dirty!

When they've sat in there for about five minutes, take them out and rinse them with warm water. Pat them dry with paper towels or a dish towel. Lay them flat out to dry for a few hours. I went ahead and let mine dry over night.

Before

After

So there's a cheap and cost efficient way of cleaning your makeup brushes. Hope you enjoyed this post! Until next time friends!~

Saturday, September 13, 2014

Katy Perry Lashes♡


My friend gave me these lashes and I wore them for my birthday. I was super stoked to give them a try because I've seen a lot of people wear them and they always looked great!

They have a self applicator on the eyelashes already, so you don't need eyelash glue. Although I'd put some on if I wear them more than once and if I'm going out for a long time and need extra stability. These were in 'Darling' and were definitely darling! I love thick, long doll like eyelashes and these were perfect on.

Here's me wearing them!


It's funny because I even got told that I looked like Katy Perry in the first picture from a relative. I do have similar hair right now, don't I? Look how thick and nice these lashes look! Totally in love.

Gonna have to get more of these. Do you enjoy wearing false eyelashes?

Tuesday, September 9, 2014

How To Clean Silver Jewelry♡


Hello, everybody! I wanted to share a secret with everyone.. How to clean silver jewelry! I know you guys have some laying around, looking dull and lifeless. Let's bring those back to life so you can start wearing them again!


What You'll Need:
1. 1 cup of boiling water
2. 1 tablespoon white salt
3. 1 tablespoon baking soda
4. 1/2 cup white vinegar
5. 1 sheet of tinfoil (shiny side up)
6. pretty decent size bowl
7. polishing cloth


Directions:
After your water starts to boil, place the tinfoil shiny side up inside your bowl. Adding your salt and baking soda first. Slowly pour your vinegar in. It'll start to fizz but that's normal! Add your water and stir to make sure there's no huge pieces still in the bowl. You don't want it to scratch up your jewelry!


Place your jewelry in:
Softly spread out your jewelry along the bowl. You don't have to do anything else except sit and wait! If you want, you can flip the jewelry over to make sure both sides get exposed to the chemicals.


Polishing time:
Be careful taking them out, they still may be hot! Take your polishing cloth (I used microfiber cloth) and buff it! You should definitely start seeing results as you rub the tarnish off!

This is a cheap and effective way to clean your silver pieces. Hope you enjoy your new shiny jewelry! Until next time friends!~

Saturday, September 6, 2014

Cute Bunny Nail Tutorial♡


I'm going to show you how to do these cute, simple bunny nails! I personally think they can be worn all year round and are just simply adorable! So let's get started.♡


What you'll need:
1. toothpicks
2. bottom coat color (your choice! i prefer pastels)
3. white nail polish
4. pink nail polish
5. black nail polish
6. clear top coat


Directions:
1. Apply your bottom coat regularly. (I did two coats!)
2. Using your white nail polish, apply a circle at the end of your nail. Then grabbing toothpicks, brush on the ears. I used a dotting motion to try and get them as straight as I could. It's okay if they're not perfect!
3. Using your pink nail polish, dab a toothpick in the polish and line the ears.
4. Lastly, add black dots for eyes. Keeping them further apart to make it look more 'cutesy'. You can add a tad of white to make the eyes look a bit more dimensional. Add a top coat and you're done!

Hope you enjoyed this quick, simple tutorial! Until next time guys!~

Thursday, September 4, 2014

Hair History♡


There's some sort of guilty pleasure in reading about someone's hair history. I was reading From Roses blog post and thought I'd make mine too. I was born with thin, medium brown hair. Wispy and always flying untamed, although my mom did her best to pull it up in pony tails.


Ever since I first dyed my hair at the ripe old age of fourteen, I've been addicted to coloring and changing my hairstyle. (Picture on the left is my first black dye from a box) On the right, is a few blonde highlights and me trying ever so hard to get those 'scene' bangs that were so in at the time. I stuck with growing out my hair while hiding behind my bangs for a few years.


Above is my sophomore year of high school. Can't really seem to see what my face actually looks like back then? After going back and forth during this time with black hair/getting more blonde highlights, this is just a faded black dye. I never brushed my hair much. I was going for that 'messy' and 'carefree' look.


Right before my junior year of high school, I took the plunge and chopped my hair off. Making sure to tell my hairstylist to add a ton of layers. I really liked this hairstyle and just let it grow out until my senior year. (So simple to take care of and looked extra cute curled)


My Senior year is when I started to really lighten up my hair. I always wondered what I would look like blonde, but never had the guts to finally dye it. I dyed it all myself. Going through the orange phase. It took me almost all of my senior year to finally start getting it blonde.


For the longest while I was stuck with the orange/copper blonde and couldn't stand it! Especially with such dark eyebrows that I have. Taking so much time bleaching my hair, my hair wasn't very damaged at all. I would condition it as much as I could, not using much heat on it and if I did I would make sure to have a heat protectant on.


When I finally reached my white/blonde I was so happy and loved it. The thing was, maintenance. My hair grows exceptionally fast and in just a couple of weeks my roots would be showing a lot. I didn't like to redye a lot. I tried going long as I could before having to touch up my roots. (About 7 weeks after each touch up) It got exhausting and I was doing it all myself. (Not doing the best job) So I finally just went back to dark brown.


2012/2013 was my first year of college and around this time, I wasn't scared of dying my hair at all. I saw inspiration, and went for it without any hesitation. Even to see what I'd look like with red hair! It was fun and I loved to them all, but I wanted to go back to the closest brown to my natural I could before my wedding. (I wanted to make sure to look like me when I looked back on wedding pictures)


The beginning of this year, I played around with ombre for a bit, knowing I was going to cut a lot off soon. I kept the long ombre hair for a while. Also, trying to let my bangs grow out. I even went lighter for a bit, giving a lot of blonde highlight through my hair.


Just a while ago I chopped off my hair. Wanting to get rid of all that over dyed hair and just have some change. I lightened up a bit more and was rockin' this look for a while.


My hair is already starting to grow back out a lot. I've went back dark and am gonna always change up my hair in some way. It's just hair, it grows back, so why not try things out and live a little? I never regret all my dyes and cuts, it's all about having something new and feeling good about yourself.

What's your hair story?

Monday, September 1, 2014

21st Birthday Haul♡


♥ Beauty and the Beast Cosmetic Bag
♥ Beauty and the Beast iPhone Case
♥ Mac Lipstick in Russian Red
♥ Mac Lipstick in Full Fuschia
♥ Naked 2 Eyeshadow Palette from Urban Decay
♥ Chocolate Bar Eyeshadow Palette from Too Faced
♥ Flower Crown from Claire's
♥ Sephora Instant Moisturizer
♥ Make Up Forever Free Birthday Gift (lipstick & mascara)

My birthday is August 31st, and I just turned the mighty 21 years old. It's strange that I could walk into a store and come out with alcohol if I wanted! (I'm not a drinker anyways) I had fun buying all of this, but I am very blessed for my family who sent birthday money my way. My birthday couldn't have been more perfect and I enjoyed spending it with my dog and husband.

Hope you enjoyed my little birthday haul. Until next time friends~