Over Priced Shades Have Never Given Us Vision

I was listening to a Lecrae song the other day and I finally decided to write a post inspired by one of the lines from his Gravity  album.

 "And them overpriced shades have never given us vision."
                                              -"Mayday". Gravity

Every time I hear this line, no matter how many times I hear it, there is this nagging  light bulb that starts flickering and buzzing shines in my head. I mean, how many of us have paid or have known people who have paid in the double and even triple digits for a pair 'high quality" sunglasses? When you think about it, it's kind of ridiculous. I can't speak for anyone else, but I know for a fact that my "stylish" sunglasses always end up broken or forgotten. When I think about all the time I spent in stores, standing in front of a rotating tower of sunglasses, trying them on and breaking them in, only to buy and lose them in the end, it angers me.

Are overpriced shades helping me in any way?  Some will argue about the quality. But let's be real...sunglasses are really just an accessory. Something we only pull out on occasion. We use them to make our outfits look....sunny (for lack of a better description). Unless your eyes are legally going bad, sunglasses come no where close to being a necessity. So why are we paying so much for them?

                                         

  I got these glasses from the dollar store today. They may not seem as tinted as a pair of sunglasses that run for $70.00, but they get the job done....especially if you're going to use them as accessories.

Unchained Beauty

  If you've read my blog from the beginning you'll notice that things have drastically changed. But if you haven't, I'll tell you, that starting today, this blog is going through a makeover (you'll find the irony in this later). Although I enjoyed writing about clothes, styling and fashion for a bit, I could not continue to lie to myself for too much longer. Fashion is not my passion, Jesus is. And if nothing I do goes back to Him it's pointless. Blogging is pointless if you aren't writing about things that are true matters of the author's heart. So, it's time for me to be real with myself.
  I am tired of living to please people with my appearance. I have reached the point where I can't decide if I am dressing for my gratification or for the gratification of someone else. This tug of war that I am in is exhausting. For years I have struggled with my looks. The taunting and teasing of childhood peers are the root of my insecurities. I would lose minutes of my life staring in the mirror, studying every structure of my face. I was trying my best to decide if I was someone people could find attractive. Quickly, I would decide that attraction did not rest in my features, and with grave disappointment I would  reach for the tools that were supposed to "make-up" for all the areas that I lacked. There were some days that I felt as if I had steel chains that linked me to my makeup bag. I became a slave to the morning routine of instant change.

But for who?

 Who was I changing for? Daily, I woke up and I began the robotic routine of improving myself. Straight lines on my eyes, pink clouds on my cheeks, flawless brown skin. I was becoming me...or at least the worlds view of me. But my thinking behind this was flawed, probably more flawed than the face I was trying to mask away from the world. The truth is, at the end of the day,despite any little comments that I might have received, when I came home and the concealer came off the only thing I was left with was me. The real me, the me that was created in the image of God.  

God.

   It's funny. When I add Him into the equation of my dependency on makeup (as I should have from the beginning) I'm realizing that putting make-up on my face to improve my natural born features is the biggest insult to God. To the one that created me and gave me to this world. To the One is perfect and without flaw. To the One who doesn't make mistakes.

I am not beautiful because my best friend's sister's husband's homeboy told me so.

I am beautiful because God says so and He desires to have me.

"And the king will desire your beauty. Bow down to him, for he is your lord."
-PSALM 45:11

Why Fashion Magazines May Be In Trouble

Gone are the days when women looked to magazines to guide them in their shopping selections. Flipping through pages, hopeful for coupons, desperate for the budget shopping tips found in the "Steals and Splurges" section of a lower-end fashion magazine. Those days are dead. That may be a little dramatic, but I guess I'm trying to say that fashion magazines are losing their value.

Those corporate hours spent racing to make publishing deadlines, budgets made to hire models, choosing photographers, and picking stylist are now being replace by the 13-year-old who only has time to write a quick post on her choice of nail polish from her smart phone as she rushes to class. Oh yes. The competition in the fashion guiding world is becoming fierce. 

Instead of sending checks for magazine subscriptions, style hopefuls and gurus now have the option of sending comments to the stylist of their favorite blog subscription. They can get personal with the blog author or vlogger, sharing what they did and did not like about the post, even making their own request of what they would like to see the writer or YouTuber try. 

There is something about fashion magazines that establishes a sense of hierarchy. Most times, they are showing ads and styles of clothes that average people would never be able to afford. But bloggers? let's just say that a lot of them know a little something about shopping on a budget. The bloggers reach the "regulars". The people who enjoy the fashion freedom of well known entertainers but don't have the means or money to do so. Now, us "regulars" no longer have to flip through magazines and drool with defeat in our eyes. We can log on to Google Chrome, begin a search, and allow the blogging beauty community of the "regulars" to take us away into a world of affordability and creativity.

These are a few of the many bloggers and vloggers who are now beginning to make their mark in leading the fashion world.

From left to right:

1. Missiffa.com

http://www.missiffa.com/

2. YouTube/ Bethany Mota

https://www.youtube.com/user/Macbarbie07

3. Zoella.co.uk

http://www.zoella.co.uk/

The Crocodile Huntress

Bindi Irwin is simply beautiful.

While shopping in the store this morning, I ran across a magazine that had her seemingly more mature face on the cover. It reminded me of the days of the most adventurous "Crocodile Hunter." Back then, I lived for Animal Planet, and the crocodile hunter was apart of that love. I remember her being a very bubbly child as she stood along side her dad with an anaconda casually wrapped around his neck. And now, here she is, almost ten years after the death of her father and she looks stunning.

Not bad for a girl who runs with monkeys and kangaroos at the Australia zoo.

Can I just say that I love snug fitting long sleeved dresses. This dress especially speaks to me because of the flared  bottom. That's more to my taste. My lower back area is slightly...rounded, so a fitting dress wouldn't meet my conservative desires. But the one that Bindi Irwin is wearing looks fun. The black and white color scheme along with the floral patterns give the dress elegance...but the boots...sigh...let's talk about the boots, shall we? I LOVE a girl who is able to pull off a dress with combat boots and make it look as flawless as she does. It gives the look some edge and it gives me the confidence that one day...I will be able to stand tall in a dress with no inch heels.

One more thing,

I came across a few YouTube videos of Bindi as she has reached the coming of age year of 16, and I absolutely love how dynamic her character is. She is so entertaining to watch, even when she is talking about the simplest things. I think she is carrying on her fathers legacy very well.

Black Radiance Foundation and Concealer Review

 Here it is!

In these photos I've applied the foundation and concealer that came in my Black Radiance collection box. I'm also wearing the raspberry blush with  the black shadow and liner mineral. I'm new to the concealer world, but I found that I enjoyed that more than the foundation. The coverage seems to pass in the photos but it wasn't nearly as convincing as MAC. Maybe I'm just biased, but I did feel as if I had to apply several coats of foundation before my satisfaction began to kick in. 

The powdered foundation was called mocha, and although it seemed to turn out...ok on my skin, I'm still not completely sold. 

But as I stated in my YouTube video the blush is a must!

Do It Like A Brotha

I made the jump.

It felt a little odd at first, but as my familiarity with shuffling through racks in search of the perfect red tag number grew stronger I began to feel at home. To be honest, shopping in the men's section of Forever 21 proved to be a little fun. I've always thought it was weird that such a seemingly feminine store would create a line for men, but despite my boggled mind, I managed to tip toe my way over there.

As I went through the shirt rack I ran across a variety of masculine shirts that could be worn in a feminine way. The shirts above were great statement shirts.

The black tank states, "No thing can come of no thing." It was quoted from William Shakespeare, which is perfect for me considering that I'm a literary geek. The second one has some humor to it considering that posting selfies has become an international symbol for narcissism. But I laughed when I saw it, and I even laugh when I get compliments and smiles because of it.

These two pieces are great adds for a girl that's simply trying to find her style.

Check Yo' Hattitude

Tea parties are exciting. Not just because I love tea, but because they provide the perfect opportunity to put on my best tea-time hat and practice my British accent (because every American secretly wants one). For the past three years my church has held our very own "Healthy Hattitude Tea". Our social hall is decorated with beautiful spring colors and women come in their "Sunday-best" with wonderful, exciting and personality fitting hats to top it off.  It's very fun and quite elegant. However, I will admit that hats are not a common choice in my accessory selection, so whenever this event comes around I find myself running to my grandmothers closet. When it comes to searching for classic vintage looks, Grandma-dearest has never failed me.