"Style" and "motherhood" are not two things that I typically associate with each other. Not because I haven't seen tons of cutely dressed momma's. Quite to the contrary. I've seen mom's rocking heels, cute little sundresses, et cetra and looked at them all with envy. Maybe I am just lazy but most days I forget to brush my hair and throw on whatever is clean.
I have been trying to figure my "style" out, though. I don't want to be the mom who wears leggings five days out of the week. (And I have totally done this, btw. I probably have at least 18 pairs of black leggings.) I definitely look for comfort, simplicity, and affordability when it comes to fashion and beauty. There is no need to spend two hours doing my makeup to chase around a toddler or go grocery shopping. In fact, I am pretty sure if I required that much time to get ready, I would never get anything done.
As a mother, I think the hardest thing to figure out is what do I do with my hair?! It has gotten long enough to be a hassle when it is down. If I put it up in a ponytail or bun all day, my head starts to pound and this makes for one cranky momma. My solution: BRAID! This has been my go-to hair do since I had my son. I can do it in about 3.213 seconds and wear it all day without wanting to kill somebody. For awhile, I was really into just french braiding my bangs to one side and leaving the rest of my hair down. This was perfect while my bangs and hair were growing out. But now that my hair is so long, it looks kind of silly. So, I learned how to do the very popular fish tail braid. It took me awhile to pick it up, but now I can do a good one in about 10 minutes. Which obviously is longer than just doing a "normal" braid, but I definitely think taking the extra time to do the fish tail makes me look more...stylish.
As for makeup, I essentially use the same products every single day. Unless I am going out or doing something special, I keep it to a minimum. My new love is the Garnier BB Cream! If you don't know what BB Cream is, you are seriously missing out. I use this every single day, even if I don't wear any other makeup. It is a moisturizer, SPF 15, and gives an even skin tone. My skin doesn't break out, and I don't feel like I am wearing a pound of foundation. But I still get coverage and glow. Best of all, you can pick it up at basically any department or drug store for about $12! For my eyes, I typically always wear mascara. I have tried a million different kinds, and the one that I have liked the most is Mega Plush Volum'Express from Maybelline ($6). Initially, I only bought this because it had a cute bottle and was cheap. But it is perfect! This mascara does not clump or make my eyelashes hard and gross. It just gives me natural volume and length. I used to think that I needed waterproof mascara being a mother, but after having to nearly claw my eyes out with a washcloth every time I wore makeup, I realized I was wrong. So now it washable mascara all the way! When I want to add a little umph to my makeup routine, I will use eyeliner. I love my Sephora brand nano eyeliner which I carry every where. It was only $5 at the Sephora store, and I swear that it has lasted me forever despite its size. Not to mention, it is completely wearable for the entire day and smudge proof! Definitely worth every single penny. Lastly, I barely ever wear lipstick. What I do use is this new product from Maybelline called Baby Lips. I have it in Pink Punch (pink) and Quenched (clear). This is technically considered a "lip balm" with SPF 20 and moisturizers. It leaves my lips so soft and tasty, plus it protects them! Doesn't get much better than that.
As for "fashion", I still look for comfort. You can always expect to find me wearing ballet flats rather than heels. In this summer heat, shorts are a must have! I get most of my bottoms from JCPenney. At the begging of the season, I found the cutest pair of destroyed jean shorts there for $13 regular priced! I went back and bought a couple more pairs I loved them so much. The top that I am wearing in the picture with my JCPenney shirt was a lucky find at a resale store. Purple is my favorite color, but I literally owned nothing purple. When I ran across this American Eagle shirt and it was only $4, I knew that I had to get it. It is seriously the most comfortable, cute, and amazing shirt that I have ever owned. I cannot find it on their website, and I have Google searched more than I'd care to admit to buy more. I would sell my unborn children to get these in every color of the rainbow. That is how comfortable they are!
Overall, I wouldn't consider myself to be stylish or a "fashionista". I kind of just go with the flow and try to look naturally cute with as little effort as possible. And now you have my invaluable knowledge :)
Nice piece Em! Here are some websites to check out to get "free samples" of stuff. I get all kinds of neat stuff all the time. This allows me to try a product before I buy it.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.mysavings.com/free-product-samples-section/
http://www.heyitsfree.net/
http://www.pgeveryday.com/pgeds/index.jsp
http://www.totallyfreecrap.com/
Lisa Plants
I am far from being a fashionista, but like you, I wear whatever is comfortable. I'm a busy person and I need to be as comfortable as possible since I'm gone for most of the day and evening. Presentable and cute, but simple.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Lisa! I will definitely check those places out. I love free stuff :)
ReplyDelete@Carla - Comfortable is my middle name lol. Unless there is a need to be dressed up, I am always just trying to be comfy and cute. Maybe one day I can be a mom fashionista....but not today!