Hair Tutorial: Preventing the Side Braid Droop

 Eeeks! Check out that drooping side braid!

Check out this video tutorial of how to prevent that pesky drooping from happening!

Am I the only one who has suffered from this side braid droop debacle? 

I love having layered hair, but sometimes when I put it in a side braid and that droopiness starts to happen I kind of hate the layers creating this dreaded droop! This can also happen to those of you with the gorgeous silken strands that everyone is envious of. To prevent this you just have to add another step to your braiding routine, check out the video to see how I prevent the side braid droop. 

In this last photo I am showing you how it looks if you want to do a quick up-do with your side braid, as I explained in the video. 

I hope you enjoy it! 

photos by Margaret Thombs

Another Black Maxi

Outfit Details:

maxi dress: Charming Charlie (similar and similar)

necklace: Charming Charlie

shoes: Talbots

lipstick: Nars in Heat Wave

sunglasses: Loft

Simply put, you can never have too many black maxi dresses. They are such an easy piece to throw on when you have no idea what else to wear or you can jazz them up with lots of color or some crazy patterns. 

I love the versatility of this piece of clothing! I do only have 2 of them, so obviously I need a few more in my closet so I don't repeat them too often and so they all last longer! Simple logic there. 

Here I kept the pairings pretty simple. I added my Bcbg belt for a bit of sparkle and these sandals from Talbots, which are going to be making an appearance on this blog A LOT this Spring and Summer. They are the perfect comfortable chic sandal that goes with everything! The necklace added a polished touch to the look and the pop of red lips always adds the perfect pop of color to brighten any outfit! Here I have Nars lipstick in Heat Wave on, a great orangey-red for those of you who like the warmer toned reds. 

Maybe once I feel I have the right amount of black maxi dresses in my wardrobe I will switch to the ever-faithful navy to switch things up! 

Do you guys think this is a rut I am getting stuck in or a smart move because of its versatility?

photos by Margaret Thombs

Lace and Cobalt Blue

Outfit Details: 

dress: Bobeau from Nordstrom Rack (similar)

bag: Danielle Nicole from Piperlime (similar)

necklace: 14th & Union via Nordstrom Rack (similar)

bracelets: vintage

shoes: gift 

fox ring: The Alchemy Shop

I absolutely love this cobalt blue cross-body bag I got during the amazing 50% off sale Piperlime had back after New Years. The other cross-body I use coincidentally enough, is also by Danielle Nicole! They have super cute, yet very affordable purses and bags for everyday or evening. 

The bonus is that I can remove the long strap to make it just a hand-held purse. It fits everything I need in a chic compact size that isn't too bulky. 

I paired this pop of color with my go-to comfy lace dress and these low-key polka-dot heels. I wore this outfit for a personal styling client meeting. Lately I have made the conscious decision to utilize my wardrobe fully whenever I go out, even if it is just to meet with someone for 30 minutes. I have felt so much more awake and motivated to get things done, when I feel polished and put-together. I just have to keep this up and not only reach for my usual pieces, like jeans and a tee, unless I had some awesome heels and statement jewelry with it! 

How do you utilize your whole wardrobe?! 

photos by Margaret Thombs

Going Natural... Well kind of

I love using just a serum in my damp hair after the shower and letting it air dry. That way I get lovely natural waves and I don't have to spend a lot of time on my hair and can focus on more important things like sleeping in or reading a romance novel or scrolling instagram.  The hair serum I am using is Hypnotik Hair from 1 am Beauty  (check out my other post about it: Product Review ). I have been very happy with it and plan on finishing the bottle! 

Obviously this is not my hair 100% in its natural state, because red is not my natural hair color.  Most of you know this if you have known me longer than a year or have checked out some of my posts from further back. I have finally made the decision to go back to my natural color. That way if I do want that red back I will use my temp color from Clairol to jazz things up!

 It's not that I don't love the red, I definitely do! I just don't like that I can't go back and forth between the blonde and red as easily as I used to.  Another aspect of this permanent red hair is the touch up. It is getting to be too much and I have gotten lazy, so now I have the lovely blonde roots majorly showing. 

Over a full year of being a red head has been wonderful and I am so glad I tried the permanent red. I felt spunkier and more vibrant. Maybe it was because I was becoming more confident in my business or maybe it really was just the red hair (we may never know). But it is time. Granted my natural blonde hair does have some red in it so I am never truly without it, I just want to be lazy again without looking like a hot mess. You feel me?

What do you guys think? Excited for a lighter shade on the blog?

photos by Margaret Thombs

Maxi Skirt & Crop Top

Outfit Details:

hat: Bebe (similar)

top: Asos

skirt: Staring at Stars via Urban Outfitters

belt: BCBG MaxAzria (similar or similar)

shoes: Madden Girl

ring: Olytata

Spring is here and I am so ready to dust off all of my crop tops, maxi skirts and sandals! Here I kept the ensemble simple, top and skirt with the belt to tie them together. These sandals I also wore in Preparing for Spring, I absolutely love these! They are so comfortable and can be pared with a lot of different outfit pairings. 

If you are just catching up with my blog now, you will soon find out that I love crop tops! Now my bod is not in the shape to wear them with low rise pants or to show off my midriff [maybe one day ;) ]. So I use them to pair with high-waisted skirts and pants so that I don't have to deal with the bulk of tucking in a shirt. If you have ever suffered from this dilemma, go and get some for yourself and try them out! 

How do you wear your crop tops?

Here are some other posts featuring my array of crop tops:

Preparing for Spring

Stripes on the Beach

Retro Florals

Sunshine Daisies

The Wanderer

Some cute options to get you started! 

photos by my dad