Back to School Fashion: Part Deux

Now you have the basics...

Recap: Things you need as basics for your back to school wardrobe: v-necks, skinny/bootcut jeans, blazer, cardigans (Back to School Fashion: Part 1)

This fall is all about clean, effortless looking, simplicity. So, your makeup shouldn't be any different. Here are some looks that will be sure to impress this fall.

From a Michelle Phan Makeup Tutorial

Simple Makeup

  Keeping it simple isn't bad. Simplicity is beautiful too:) To achieve a simple look don't over emphasize any one aspect of your face. Now, I didn't say don't emphasize any features on your face, I said don't over emphasize. The simple makeup look is without drama, so no bold eyeshadows. What you want is a clean powdered face, simple eyeliner, mascara, and light colored blush. For the eyeliner stay as close to the lash line as you possibly can and tightline your eyes to create a look of fuller eyelashes (tightlining is lining under  your lashline.)

Tightlining your eyes

                                                                  Bold Eyes

Taylor Swift-Bold Eyes, Clean Face

  Another great back to school fall look is bold eyes and simple makeup. The hues for this fall are copper, gold, brown, and warm colors in general. When using eyeshadow know what you are trying to create. Do you want a smoky eye? want to bring out your eye color more? coordinate with colors in outfit? A great eyeshadow palette for fall is Maybelline Eye Studio in Give me Gold. This eyeshadow palette looks great on all eye colors. And this palette has all the great colors of fall! Another way to create a bold eye for back to school is dramatic eyelashes. This can be created with or without false eyelashes (but for school I myself wouldn't do the false eyelashes...that is just me.) 

The Minor Details

Aside from your main makeup look you need to take care of a few other things first: keep your skin clean, fill out your eyebrows, and chapstick. 

1. Keeping your skin clean and clear is the best way to keep it looking healthy and glowing. So adopt a skincare routine that fits your face and stick with it. It is now that you should start taking care of it, so that you can keep it healthy for years to come. 

2. Filling out your eyebrows may not be a necessity for everyone. But, by filling out I don't mean drawing your brows on. Just fill in any spaces to keep your brows looking great a full. And for those who may have over plucked your eyebrows to the point of almost non-existence, filling in is a great way to hide your mistake while giving them time to grow back (we have all done it...or may do it once...it happens...we learn from our mistakes!)

Pink Blossom

3. Chapstick. Chapstick. Chapstick. Keep those lips moisturized and healthy! Moisturized lips look a hundred times better than dry cracked lips! And if you want to try a pop of color but aren't into lipstick try a tinted chapstick like Burt's Bees:)

I hope that you guys are liking the back to school fashion series:) I have a few more posts in this series to go...what things would you like to see in the coming posts? Leave your suggestions in the comments, or under Questions/Suggestions, or in the Community Answers box on the right hand side of the page (below popular posts.) Hope to get some feedback and enjoy your weekend!!! :) Get out there and try something new!

Back to School Fashion: Part 1

Going back to school???

Pretty Little Liars

There are many great ways to start off your year right, and a versatile wardrobe is a good start. Clothes are an extension of your personality, so it is always great to accentuate it to the best of your ability. I for one remember the days of trying to pick out a fantabulous outfit for first day of school every year to impress everyone (even though, looking back, some of those outfits were pretty awful...) And I am looking forward to my first year in college now where I will get to do just that again:)

The great thing about back to school fashion this year is, there are so many great trends going on right now that are also appropriate for school. I know, sometimes it can be hard to find clothes that look great AND are legal to wear at school. We have all been there! 

One fool proof way to stay in style this year is have some great basics. What I mean by this is, have basic pieces in your wardrobe that can be layered or paired with multiple items in your closet so that you can have many outfits. Having great pieces in your wardrobe helps build your wardrobe tremendously! Pieces to have this year in your back to school wardrobe:

1. V-Neck shirt

Target V-neck

  V-necks are a great basic that can be paired with a jacket, cardigan, vest, skirt, shorts, jeans, dresses, almost anything! That is why it is a great piece to have:) You don't want anything too low cut because you may not be able to wear it to school, and too low cut shirts may not be age appropriate for middle school goers. So look for a great cut. My favorite v-neck right now is one that I obtained from Target. This is one that I recommend for most everyone in the v-neck market...it has a great cut and is super soft. They come in many colors and are on sale right now at Target for $5!!! Why not pick up a few for that low of a price?! 

2. Skinny Jeans/Bootcut Jeans

  Two other pieces that you should have in your back to school wardrobe are skinny jeans and bootcut jeans. These two cuts of jeans are great on most figures and will pull together most any outfit. But try to avoid torn, frayed, ripped, or bleached jeans, these are not in style and are not appropriate for school. Darker washes look great!

Michelle Phan rocking a blazer and a dress

3. Blazer 

  Blazers look great on men, but are making a statement on women now too! Blazers make a great statement piece for this fall and can be paired with anything from a v-neck and jeans to a dress. It is just a great piece to have. 

4. Cardigans

  Cardigans are a great piece if you want to layer, or add some color or texture to an outfit, and they are just so cute!!!

So those were just some basics for your closet. I will put up another post on some great looks for back to school. I am posting this in parts because I was so behind so I wanted get something out there so that y'all don't give up on me:) Enjoy. And, get out here and try something new!

Sorority Rush Week

A brutal process...so I hear...

Rush Week is approaching fast and I am more ready than ever! Yeah...I will be participating in Rush Week...so what?! :) I have heard all of the horror stories about it, but I have heard more good than bad things about rushing to tell you the truth. I am so excited for college and ready for my next step in life to begin. I move into my dorm the 9th of August, and Rush begins the 10th and lasts till the 15th (which is the first day of classes! eeeeee!!!) I have confidence that I will make it...but just in case some sororities need a little persuasion I have a great arsenal of dresses, a beaming personality, and a killer resume;) POW! Triple threat.

And just for fun...here are a few of my dresses that I will be wearing for Rush Week:

I love this dress now. What do I mean by "now?" Well what I mean is that I hated this dress on the hanger and didn't like it so much when I originally tried it on. It hung wrong, it was way below the knee, and I didn't like it. But, with the coaxing of my dad I eventually bought it. Why? Because he suggested that we could get it altered. Ah, alterations, you have saved me many times. And this dress was no exception. It looks soooooo much better now! Thanks Dad for convincing me to get it! Here is the original...which do you like better?

Before

After

Another dress that I plan to wear is this white one. We are required to wear a white dress on the last day of Rush (Aug. 15) because that is induction day. We all wear white dresses. I can't wait to wear this one. Some girls don't make it to the last day because they are either cut or drop out...but I plan to make it:)

Zoomed in on waist of dress

And the third dress I am showing you is a fun one:)

This one has a small "cut-out" back. I haven't decided on shoes for it yet though...

Well I hope you like these dresses. I can share more of my dresses if anyone is interested. Be sure to leave your comments and vote in this week's poll:) Get out there and try something new!

Timeless Summer Pieces

Trends come and go, but there are the classic pieces of ones wardrobe that can be worn every year. 

 One timeless piece to have in your summer arsenal is a nice pair of jean shorts. Nothing skimpy, just some basic jean shorts that you can slip on to go run errands or wear to a last minute get together at the park or beach. Some of the jean shorts that you see now could even put Daisy Duke's shorts to shame! So, when thinking about your wardrobe you need to think classy. Ask yourself, "What will I wear for years to come?" And I would hope jean panties don't answer that question. The shorts that you see at the left are shorts that I found on sale at American Eagle (AE). They are call "high-waisted shorties." Now you are probably saying, "But I thought you said nothing too short..." but hold on a sec. These shorts are a higher waist, so they will flatter many body types. If you need a little something to smooth out your stomach area these do the trick. This beats a muffin top any day! And these shorts look great with a cute top tucked in and a little brown belt and show off those tall ladies long legs. But these really aren't super short contrary to their name "shorties." If you get the right size, these shorts will look and feel great. So, look for jean shorts in a dark and light wash (nothing frayed or acid washed) and in an appropriate length. Years from now you will thank yourself for getting classy shorts when the "jean panty trend" and "ripped-to-shreds-clothing trend" are gone. And wearing cute, classy clothing is always in style!

Another piece to have in your summer wardrobe is an airy sundress or maxi dress. Now for those ladies who say dresses aren't their thing, that's alright. There is something for everyone, but at least consider dresses. And here is why dresses are a must for summer, there are times that I have gotten ready, my makeup is all done, my hair is cutely braided, and I have no idea what I want to wear: sundresses and maxis are your easy and cute life saver outfits. You can  wear the dress as is with a pair of flip flops or pair it with a cute waist belt and some dressy sandals, heels, or wedges. They just work as a great base for a summer outfit! 

Always have flowy tops and thinner tanks for summer too (and you can always wear v-necks, they work in most seasons.) You don't really want to wear uber thick clothes in the summer (if you live somewhere humid or hot or both.) Now some of the airy tops are made of see through fabric so you want to invest in some camisoles and basic tank tops for these, because seeing your bra and what not is not cute nor classy. But on some of the tank tops you can get away with a nude colored bra (a really good one is the Incredible by Victoria's Secret demi bra in nude.) 

Cardigans are a great thing to have in your wardrobe all year long! There are lighter and thicker materialed cardigans that enable you to rock them all year. Cardigans can be worn with v-necks, dresses, tank tops, basically anything that needs some pizazz. but for summer I would definitley integrate this in. Every year they are in style and they look nice and can bring an outfit together. And the idea of belting can be brought to these as well. Belting a cardigan over a cute basic top or with a dress can add a whole new level of chic to an outfit. I know that the picture is of a fall outfit, but if you remove the tights and boots and add some cute flats or sandals this becomes pretty summery and can be worn year after year.

Accessory-wise you just need some basic pieces to mix in with your wardrobe:

1.) Long gold or silver necklace with a simple pendant on it. This one here is mine that I purchased at a local boutique (it's about 12 inches long.) I absolutely love it, and simplicity goes a long way.

2.) A skinny brown belt that you can use to belt dresses, skirts, cardigans, or pair with some cute shorts:) I have one similar to the one in the middle. I just adore braided belts

3.) Cute little statement rings

4.) Airy scarves, either to wear in your hair or around your neck

5.) Sandals and flats that can coordinate with many outfits. Muted metallic colors are great for this. You can glam up an outfit or go casual with muted metallics. And reddy-brown leather sandals, or any shoe in that color really, can go with so many different types of outfits.

When it comes to accessories simplicity is key. You can pair many simple things together to make an outfit as opposed to trying to pair many ornately detailed accessories together. After a while too much detail looks gaudy. 

These are just some basic things to keep in mind if you are building a classy wardrobe that can be worn from year to year. It's great to be trendy, but remember, classy is always in style. So get out there and try something new:)

Shorts are from American Eagle

Soft pink maxi dress pic is from Chriselle's YouTube Channel. Check her out at: http://www.youtube.com/user/chrisellelim
The purple tank is from Forever 21

You can find the Incredible bra by Victoria's Secret here:http://www.victoriassecret.com/ss/Satellite?ProductID=1265530713184&c=Page&cid=1308310592285&pagename=vsdWrapper

The belts seen are from Mossimo Supply Co. and can also be found at Target

Sandal by: DV by Dolce Vita