Archives for July 2017

Je Joue

07/31/2017 By Sarah 4 Comments

Late summer is here, arriving like a sadly sweet song on the radio. I hold onto every honeydew moment in the sun, trying to shed my worries as much as possible and soak up these remaining summer days. July has been our absolute busiest month yet, and I realize I’ve been working more than I’ve been enjoying my favorite season. So I’m vowing right now to take more deep breaths, laugh more, get outside, spoil myself with time to do nothing (without looking at a screen… which is tough!), dance to my favorite songs, sing with my lover, eat healthier every day, chase new experiences, make new friends, and pick all the wildflowers that make my heart content.

In this day and age, I see so many of us focused on materialism, and filled with judgement, jealousy, or misunderstanding towards each other. We want what someone else has because we think- “if I just have what they have, my life will be so much better.” But what we don’t realize is that 1. nobody’s life is as perfect as it seems on the outside, so be careful what you wish for. And 2. when you focus so much on what others have or what you don’t have, you are wasting your own life away. Similarly to when you work a mediocre job that you hate, and you’re just working for someone else’s dream instead of your own… this is even worse: You are working against yourself, taking away energy and time that you could invest into making your life what you want it to be, and throwing that energy into negative thoughts. These thoughts grow like weeds inside you, if you let them. And then later on, you’ll have some major gardening to do to make up for it all.

Jealous of people on Instagram? Shut off your damn cell phone. Want your life to be better? Stop making excuses for why you can’t do something, or why now isn’t the right time. Baby, the things you want aren’t going to come to you, you have to go after them. And the right time is never…. so it might as well be now.

A successful business speaker once said to try this exercise: Ask yourself what you want. Then ask yourself what you want to change- whether about your life or yourself. Now take an honest look at yourself in the mirror, as if you were a stranger looking at you from the outside. Think on all those things you want and want to change… Now ask yourself if that person in the mirror really deserves it.

Your answer could be kinda painful, if you’re truly honest with yourself.

But… that is actually the most important part of the exercise, because then you have to decide that you WANT to deserve the things you want. Because wanting things isn’t enough, you have to put in the hard work and effort for these dreams to turn into reality. And maybe you’re not that person who deserves those things yet. Or maybe your mindset is all wrong. Whether it’s changing your physical appearance, having the job you covet, or living in that place you find most beautiful. If all you do is spend your time being jealous of what someone else has, never investing your time into making necessary changes, do you really think you deserve it? If you are waiting for the “right time”, do you really think the right time will walk in the door and find you?

We can do nothing for ourselves except become bitter, or we can strip out all those entitled feelings and get to work making our dreams a reality. It’s quite simple when you think about it like that.

And if you want to go a step further, you can look at it like this- If you don’t put anything out there into the universe, or only your bitterness, jealousy, or defeat, do you really think Karma is going to shower you with everything you ever dreamed of? Is feeling defeated the same as being deserving? NO! Is feeling deserving the same as BEING deserving? Sadly, no.

When Josh and I took some time to think over this exercise ourselves, I learned so much from it. We realized what we really wanted, and what we WANTED to change to go after the next big venture we dreamed of. The important thing is to not make it a personal attack on yourself, but to be as honest as possible and accept the challenge that comes with your realizations. When you chose to ignore what everyone else is doing and focus on improving yourself, for yourself, you find a sort of peace. Because you aren’t bitter anymore.

That is the purpose of the whole exercise, and that is the difference between those who dream, and those who do.

“Peaceful is the one who is not concerned with having more or less.” — Rumi

I didn’t intend to write such a long and deep post, so thank you if you read it the whole way through! I hope it can inspire you as much as I am motivated by it.

Head to the bottom of this post for outfit details!

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Skin

07/24/2017 By Sarah 2 Comments

Summer is all about being confident in your skin. We spend our days getting closer to nature and embracing the outdoors. I always feel like my normal makeup routine is too heavy for natural summer days, and end up striving to lose as much of the primping process as possible. My hair goes in braids at night for natural waves, I attempt to get a tan (or use self tanner) for a more healthy natural glow, and I focus more on my beauty and skin products to have a clean canvas for less makeup.

Going with a “no makeup” look can actually be super easy, provided you start with the right base- healthy skin! I used to believe that I’d have good skin days and bad, and my confidence would rely heavily on those good days. But after some years of blogging and trying out so many different products, I’ve found that it’s possible to have those good skin days 90% (if not more) of the time, when you treat your skin to exactly what it needs! When your skin is healthy and radiant, your confidence is there to be your true self and not feel the need to hide under makeup. I end up looking for enhancing products to throw on and go that aren’t “makeup”- which I can say really confuses the workers at Sephora and Ulta, haha! I will be excited to share my perfect product discovery for my non-makeup look in an upcoming post!

But for now, I can’t tell you enough how important it is to start your beauty routine with an amazing skincare routine. Hello Aglow‘s artisanal botanical skincare is basically what I recommend for everyone because it’s friendly for all skin types, is natural, and actually WORKS.

I can honestly say that even I am skeptical of products after using many that I didn’t like. It happens that a lot of skincare products I’m sent end up sitting on a shelf, and my hubby ends up trying them because he gets all my hand-me-downs, hahaha. Sometimes I don’t give products enough time to see their full potential, so when Josh starts using them and I see his skin looking kind of amazing, I’m all like WAIT what did you use?!

I can hands down say while in Paris, Josh and I both fell in love with the Hello Aglow complete kit. And we have 2 different types of skin! I don’t know what else to say, other than if you’re on the hunt for what’s going to give you the perfect skin blank canvas, I recommend starting off with Hello Aglow! The complete Clear Skin Kit has everything you need. But if you want to start small, the Radiant Cleansing Nectar is a MUST for getting truly cleansed skin.

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Tower Eiffel

07/19/2017 By Sarah 2 Comments

Spring in Paris at the Eiffel Tower… where blossoms scent the air, lovers picnic in the grass beyond the tower, and birds sing a bit sweeter. I can’t believe it’s been almost 6 months since I was last in Paris, and yet I still have so many beautiful photos to share! I find that time seems to go by even faster these days. Maybe it’s because life has been so busy and full of adventures, or maybe it’s because I’m turning into an adult with no life outside of work related things… uuurg. Anyone want to go out for drinks…? *cough*

Anyway… I still have some of my favorite photos tucked away on my hard drive for rainy days. Well, those don’t exist in CA, so they are saved for those days where I remember to post them.

I don’t think I’ve had enough of re-living the experiences. And I still feel like our last month there wasn’t long enough to see it all, or soak it all in. I’m excited to be heading back to France very soon, though we will be landing in the Cote d’Azur instead of the romantic city. I might have to persuade Josh to make a trip into the Paris though, as I don’t think I can miss out on seeing it in the summer!

There are so many things to love about Paris, one of my favorites being the fact that as you go about the city, you’ll find the iconic Eiffel Tower revealing itself to you. Sometimes it’s tiny, off on the horizon. Other times it’s peaking around a corner as you drive down a street. Then it’s giant, towering above you as you get closer. It’s that cliche image we all think of as representing Paris, something that is supposed to be so special, so it feels sort of ironic when you catch glimpses of it everywhere you go. Even from the top of the hill in Montmarte, there it is- sitting like a tiara upon the rooftops of Paris. And at night, it’s a beacon from every angle, a glittering reflection across the Seine with those 8:00 sparkles through the trees.

I found it extremely mundane and magical at the same time. Like I couldn’t quite decide if it was as special as the whole world makes it out to be… or maybe better.

Either way, now I miss it standing in the corner of my eye, and the gasps of tourists around me as the sparkles suddenly light up the night. I think the iron lady looks even better in photos- of course she is one of the most photographed subjects!

Head to the bottom of this post for the outfit details!

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Playlist: Just Chill

07/17/2017 By Sarah 1 Comment

When it comes to my chill music, I’m so so picky. I started putting together this playlist and it actually turned out amazing, and i’ve been listening to it every day. Wether I’m working or chilling, it just has those perfect vibes and songs you learn the words to quickly and can sing along. Since it was so good, I figured I couldn’t keep it all to my self.

Hope you enjoy!

White Hot Summer

07/16/2017 By Sarah 3 Comments

Traveling is the one thing I always go back to when I start to feel uninspired. I love planning trips to places based on what I’m currently in love with. This August, the hubby and I plan to celebrate our 6th anniversary in a spot from one of our favorite classic movies- St. Tropez, the real life set from And God Created Woman!

I’m already dreaming about what to pack. I’m sort of a beast when it comes to fitting as much as possible into my suitcase. More than I need, but when you’re a blogger you can never go without multiple options. I always get FOMO when deciding what to bring and what to leave behind. And then I usually regret it if I don’t pack that one thing. So they all must come!

Meanwhile, I’m in a very resorty mindset and leaning towards coastal textures, fabrics and patterns. Give me anything stripes or straw, and I’ll be happy as a clam. On the opposite side of the scale, I’m really finding a new love for those vintage silhouettes and classic cuts. Anywhere from the 50’s – 90’s, or a mix of both. I’ve got a whole bunch of new things to shoot and not enough time, but I’m going to try and fit them in this month, or bring them on my trip in August! Can’t wait to share all my latest creative ideas and inspirations with you!

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