Fashion on a budget. Is there such a thing?

I've always loved J. Crew but it was that store that I looked into longingly but just walked past. I knew I couldn't afford it so why depress myself by looking at beautiful clothes I cant have? I am obviously not a good window shopper. . .

Well now I can go into J.Crew and no I did not get rich all of a sudden! I learned about the Outlets at Traverse Mountain in Lehi (by Cabela's). I had never been to the Outlets because I heard they were all high end stores that I couldn't afford but I recently learned the truth! Yes there are high end stores but the J. Crew Outlet is very reasonable. The prices on the the tags still show between $40 (for t-shirts!)-$100+. That may discourage you but here is the cool part. Everything is on sale since it is an outlet. Everything I have gotten there so far has been at least 40% off but most of it was more like 60% off. Awesome right? Wait there's more! :) If you are either a college student or teacher you get an extra %15 off. Perfect for poor college students and poor teachers right?!?! I think so. It may be worth checking out.

Since I want to be a " Mormon Chic School Counselor" (MCSC) I am working on getting some nice clothes for my internship next year and my future career so this was a good find. I have yet to see the rest of the outlets besides Gap (I did stop in there and they had some good deals too) but I will keep you updated.

First J. Crew Purchase

The purple floral shirt was originally $64.50 but I got it for $10.19. Seriously amazing! Striped shirt dress normally $59.50  and I got it for $25.29. Both of those were from J. Crew. The mint cardigan was from Gap originally $39.99 and I got it for $7.99!

Always get lots of compliments when I wear my J. Crew shirt and elephant necklace that you cant see in this picture (It is in the first picture).

I hope you ladies at least go check it out up there because there are also stores like Carter's there so you can dress the kids cute too!

Enjoy

Casual Friday (Boyfriend Jeans)

Hey its casual Friday! I love casual Friday because it gives me a day to dress more casual and wear t-shirts and all that fun stuff. Sometimes I wear random concert t-shirts or a school shirt but today I decided to just wear a plan black shirt and pair it with my boyfriend jeans. I have had some people ask me about what boyfriend jeans are and how to wear them so I will tell you what I think.

•  I like boyfriend jeans with t-shirts, like what I wore today for casual Friday. 
• With boyfriend jeans it seems like they are always rolled up and they are supposed to be baggy.
• I also have seen a lot of boyfriend jeans that have holes which is really cute too.
• The great thing about boyfriend jeans is that you can dress them up or down and make tons of different outfits!

I wanted to look a bit more feminine today so I added the floral cardigan but if I had gone more simple with just the black t-shirt that would have been really cute too. I also added a pop of color with my fun flats of course.

Black v-neck from Target, Cardigan from Bella Ella Curvy, Boyfriend jeans from H&M+, flats from Ross. Did you notice I didn't take a selfie and that the pictures are better quality? Well I have decided to have other people help me out taking pictures at work so that I can now be the "Mormon Chic School Counselor (MCSC)" to be. :)

I don't do heels but if I did how cute is that?

If you wear garments just be careful with holes. You can always buy patches to attach under the holes if you do get jeans with holes up higher.

Hope this helps you with your boyfriend jean questions!

Enjoy!

5 Minute Makeup

It's time for some make up! This is good for you busy moms that barely have 5 minutes for yourselves or if you are just lazy like me and don't want to wake up earlier! I will share my fun full make up another day. This is just a quicky!

The 5 minute makeup routine involves 4 steps but if you are really in a hurry then you can skip step 1 and 2. Step 3 and 4 can be done anywhere like waiting in the car for the kids or while the baby is down for a nap then you can take 5 minutes and do those two steps and move on to all that cleaning and good stuff. 

Step 1: The very first thing I always do in the morning is use a make up remover wipe. I just get the cheap Walmart ones. I have very sensitive skin but these work great for me. 

Cheap and works great!

Step 2: Put some face lotion on. It may not matter to you but I will explain later, in a different post, why it actually helps me with my makeup. Of course it is also good for your skin too:)

This is what I use every morning and again just from Walmart

Step 3: The good stuff! First put some eyeliner on that water line. Wondering what a water line is? Look below! P.S. The first picture below is me with NO makeup on. Not many people see that so you are lucky.

Putting eyeliner on your waterline really makes a difference to how you look. Check out the middle picture. Can you tell which eye has the eyeliner on it? Crazy how one little thing can do that right? I have to warn you though. When you first try out putting eyeliner on your waterline it may sting and you may be hating me but once you get used to it then it is a quick trick to make your eyes pop. When you try it out I would just put it on the bottom and try out the top part of your eye later once you have had some practice so that you don't hurt yourself to bad:)

Again just a Walmart pencil for me. I am a couponer so I wait until I see a coupon and buy whatever brand. It doesn't seem to make a difference what brand or anything. Cheap is best for this! If you have trouble with this whole waterline thing let me know and I will help you. It takes some getting used to. I have been doing it for years now so I don't think anything of it but I remember how it used to hurt and make my eyes water.

Step 4: Mascara

You can see on the right that mascara also helps you look better.

This is where you want to spend your money. MAC mascara is awesome. I didn't know that mascaras were really that different from each other until I tried this stuff. This stuff lasts forever and I wait until there is a mascara event at Nordstrom they do buy 2 get 1 free.

So there is your before and after

You could even keep eyeliner and mascara in your purse or diaper bag and when you have a second put it on.

Want more then 5 minute make up?I will post soon with more steps for those of you who have more time (my regular make up routine) and eventually I will post about my full make up routine (my routine when I am feeling extra ambitious)


Enjoy!

OOTD

Okay so here is my outfit of the day for today. Pulled out the chambray and threw on one of my new sweaters from Christmas. Big sweaters are in right now so if you have your chambray shirt, which you should since it's one of the 10 staples:), then put a big sweater over it and you have a really cute outfit. I also have on my new boots! 

One more pic. Notice my cute gloves:) This whole outfit is from Nordstrom including the gloves! 

Random tip while I am thinking about it. I may have talked about this before but here is a thought for you. If you got money for Christmas use it to buy nicer good quality stuff. When I get money as a gift that is when I buy my nice quality staples. It's hard for me to spend a lot of money when it is my own but if it is a gift for me I buy something nice and then I remember who it's from too. You can save $10 or $20 here and there to buy trendy stuff but how often do you have $50 or more at one time? NEVER in my case so think about what you are buying!

Be on the look out for my 5 minute makeup blog post that will be up soon!

Enjoy!

Boxing Day (One In One Out) and Winter Tips

Ever seen Boxing Day on the calendar and it says its a Canadian holiday? Well I have and when I was younger I always wondered why people cared so much about some sport that they had a holiday for it. Eventually I learned from my aunt who lived in Canada for a long time that boxing day is a day that Canadians get rid of old stuff they don't need and send it to the poor.

Since then the day after Christmas I go through my clothes and shoes and get rid of at least as many things as I received (this is the one in one out strategy I have talked about  before). This morning I decided to Google Boxing Day and different countries do different things for boxing day. In Canada it has turned into a Black Friday kind of thing and in other countries it is a day where they give gifts to people who do services for them like maids, hair stylist, and others who give them services of some kind. The internet says that there is not a specific origin of Boxing Day so I am going to go with mine.

I have this thought about getting rid of things, especially clothes and shoes. I feel like since I am lucky enough to get nice things I should help others too. This is my thought- Give away clothes and shoes that you haven't worn in the last 6 months and probably wont wear again. This way if you know someone who is poor or you can send them to DI while they are still in style people who are less fortunate then you can have nice clothes too. I am not rich by any means but for Christmas I always get a decent amount of money to spend on clothes and so when I get something new I get rid of something old. Give someone else a chance to get nice things too. I know what it is like to be poor enough that you can barely afford food let alone nice clothes so think about that now that Christmas is over and you have nice new things. What can you get rid of? What shoes are sitting around not being used that someone else would love? Have some random shirt in your closet that you never have really worn because after you bought it you decided you didn't really like it? Get rid of it!

Some people get really attached to clothes because they have memories attached but the memories are still there even if you get rid of the clothes. Give someone else a chance to make memories in your clothes. 

If you are like me it feels good to get rid of stuff. I have a small house with tiny closets so I love to get rid of things I wont wear. I use my one in one out policy all year when I buy new things but especially during Christmas time because I get more then just one new thing. Try it, it feels good.

Just something to think about. 

How to stay warm out there!

  The only way I survive winter is the clothes!

Get a cute beanie. Obviously here it is just for looks not to keep me warm but when I am going to be out in the cold I use it for reals to cover my ears and stuff. I got mine at the Holy Cow but I have seen cute ones at Nordstrom and Target

Get a cute colored scarf. Make sure it is comfortable though so that you can wear it every day. I am allergic to wool so I have to be careful of that so put it on and see how it feels before you buy it. Target always has nice ones that have matching gloves and things like that. It doesn't even have to be a fashionable scarf just a winter scarf in a color you like! I got mine from my mother in law for Christmas one year so I don't know where it is from but it is super warm.

Get a coat with a hood. Hoods help keep you warm! (notice the beanie being used for reals)

And of course gloves. I have three pairs I switch between because they get dirty since I wear them so much but you really only need one pair. One suggestion though is to get some that you can use with your smart phone. The ones in this picture have different fabric on the thumb and pointer finger so that I don't have to take them off just to use my phone. I got these at Walmart.

Again from Walmart with the different fabric on the fingers.

These obviously just show my fingers so that I can use my phone when I need to.

Enjoy and stay warm if you can!

Polished

I am getting lucky lately so I have another amazing thing to share with you! I love nail polish and I have hundreds of bottles but I don't get to paint my nails as often as I would like to because of school and work and all that good stuff! The painting part is quick enough but waiting for it to dry without smudging it cleaning or something takes FOREVER! I don't have that much time to wait.

 Yesterday I went to the beauty supply store with my sister because something happened to my top coat and it has been bubbling. I was going to get the same old OPI top coat because it is amazing but something happened! I asked one of the stylists there about top coat because there were a couple of different OPI kinds. What she told me next was too good to be true. She showed me this other top coat and said it was amazing. She told me all about it and how once she puts it on it dries really quickly. She can paint her nails and then be in bed 15 minutes later and not get smudges or sheet lines. My thought was "oh great some awesome top coat that is going to cost me a ton of money I don't have." Well guess what? It was the same price as the OPI top coat. I was still skeptical but it was cheap enough that I bought it to try it.

As you can guess, since I am writing a whole post about it, it WORKED! I put it on and was amazed within a few minutes it was completely dry. I went to bed shortly after because I wanted to see if it was really that good and this morning I woke up with no sheet lines! AMAZING! 

Here it is! My sister sales it if you want some and don't know where to get it!

NO SHEET LINES!

Enjoy!

BEST.DAY.EVER!

I am so excited right now. I came right home from Bella Ella Curvy to blog about this! I found the greatest thing today. CURVY COLORED SKINNY JEANS! I haven't been able to wear colored skinny jeans in a really long time because sure there are plenty of colored skinny jeans out there but they either are too small or they show every dent and all my cottage cheese. Even at my favorite place Bella Ella Curvy they have had some but every time I try them on they show every little dent on the back of my legs and my butt. Today I went in because it was buy one get one free leggings and I need some leggings that aren't black but I found something so much better! Skinny Jeans that fit, are flattering, and don't show my dents and cottage cheese. My husband will not be happy but they were on sale and they are a beautiful color. I wanted to by them in every color because they had burnt orange, mustard, and a bunch with polka-dots too! I haven't been this excited about an item of clothing in a long time.Oh then I got home to a cute cardigan I ordered a while ago and it is cute too! Good day!

See! Amazing right? Thank you Bella Ella Curvy! (Shirt from Target)

Sorry I apparently cant turn that way and take a picture but you had to see the backside.

Did I mention I got myself a new coat:) Target $40. Amazing deal and so many other cute ones. You have to have a cute coat for when you go to church or on dates.

Enjoy!

Casual Friday

I love casual Fridays. I love to either wear some sort of tee shirt and jeans or something school related so that I can show my school spirit! If you get a casual Friday like me then use it as a fun day to wear something different. If you don't work or don't get casual Friday use Saturday because sometimes it is just fun to wear one of your favorite old tee shirts or something. I wear concert tee shirts a lot because they are full of good memories! Casual Fridays are also good days to wear your way cute vans or toms, those go to comfortable shoes!

Today I just did a plain grey tee shirt and ignore how I look I went to the dentist and got some cavities filled so I don't feel to go so I didn't do much with myself this morning! Shirt from Target, Sweater from Norstrom, Jeans from Target, Toms from Norstrom.

Have a great weekend and Enjoy!

Wildlife Wednesdays

Apparently it's the cool thing to wear animal print on Wednesdays for wildlife Wednesdays if you are in junior high. Since I'm in junior high everyday I decided to join in. Even if you don't go to junior high you are welcome to do it too:)

There's my animal print shirt for ya. Shirt from H&M, cardigan from H&M, jeans from Target, and shoes from Burlington

Enjoy!

Boots with the Fur. . .

At last its boot season! I have to say that summer is my favorite time of the year because I get to swim, wakeboard, and be in the sun. Most of all I don't have to work! Gotta love working in education! Although I do love summer it's not for the fashion. The BEST season for fashion is defiantly fall. There are so many fall fashions that I love but today it's just about the boots. 

I love boots! (not boots with fur but it made you curious right?) Since I'm in Utah there is snow and cold weather so I have to have a good pair of boots or two or three. . . You get the idea right? I used to always buy cheap boots because I can't afford to pay $100 or more for a pair of shoes. If you are like me that is a lot of money. It's tough to be a poor college student! Anyways. . . Last fall all of my cheap boots had holes or other problems and they weren't wearable. I was able to convince my husband that I would need some boots before it started to snow and he agreed that it would be better for me to buy a nice pair that would last so I headed to Nordstrom. I only had about $100 and in the shoe department at Nordstrom that's not much. Luckily there was a sale and I got some great boots for either $60 or $90 I can't remember. After I wore them I swore I would never go back to cheap boots. I couldn't believe the difference! Then later when it was near Christmas time my parents gave me some christmas money. Once again I headed to Nordstrom for another pair of boots. I found some Steven  Maddens for between $90 and $130. Again I learned nice quality boots are amazing! 

Wanna know the best part? I pulled them out to start wearing again and they still look and feel great on my feet. My cheap boots rarely lasted more then a season. 

Basically I am saying that if you struggle with boots like I did then save some money when you can and try some nice boots. You can also check Ross but I haven't been able to find good boots in my size yet. 

The other suggestion I have about boots is to get some simple ones that you can wear with everything. Usually I would say get the fun crazy ones but if you want nice ones to wear for a few years don't get crazy trendy boots like boots with the fur (See what I did there? Making good use of my title) because by the next year who knows what will be in style. 

Here are the boots I got last year that are still in great shape!

Sorry the pictures aren't great because I wasn't planning on posting about boots so this is just a picture I took for the outfit.

Boots and shirt from Nordstrom skirt and cardigan from Bella Ella Curvy.

Enjoy!

OOTD

Now that work has started again I get pretty busy especially with all this grad school stuff to so I decided to do an Outfit Of The Day. if I don't have time to post how to's  at least you can get an idea of how to put random stuff together.

Sorry for a bad blurry picture but I was trying to get a good picture of my new necklace. Normally I don't do big chunky necklaces but I decided to try and I am loving it. It's from groopdealz an it was under $10. Also here is another example if how to mix stripes with prints. Top and cardigan from Target and skirt from Old Navy and shoes from Ross of course!

Another mixing prints with stripes and finally some fall colors. Top shoes and jeans from Target. Cardigan from Bella Ella Curvy.

Tip about new shoes: So I thought I would suggest this because it's something I learned the hard way. I used to work at a shoe store which I shall not name since they fired me without cause, didn't give me my "3 written warnings" and the day before the owner told me I was doing a great job. Oh and if I go in there they will call the cops. Dramatic I know. I'm not bitter or anything..... This store  sells cheap shoes and breaking them in always made my feet hurt. I have scars on my heels and some of my toes from breaking in new shoes. Now what I learned is if you are breaking in shoes and you will be walking a lot you need two things. Band aides and another pair of shoes. Don't ruin your feet! Today I wore my new cheap shoes so I kept band aides in my pocket and another pair of shoes in my purse.  This way when my toe started to hurt I put a band aide on it before I had a blister. I didn't have to use my other pair of shoes but they were there just in case! 

Just know your shoes. Cheap shoes hurt more because they aren't nice material but who can afford nice shoes? The only way I do is because of Ross. Nicer shoes usually aren't as bad but if your not sure just take those band aides and an extra pair. 

Take care of your feet and enjoy!

Ross Dress for Less

I know I ALWAYS talk about Ross and how you can get great shoes there but I never show you. Here are some of the great shoes I have gotten there. Hopefully this gets you excited and makes you actually go check it out and find an amazing deal! All of the shoes in the picture cost under $20 and all but one pair are nice name brands that they sale at Norstrom!

So these were my first Ross purchase. Well not first purchase but it was my first pair of shoes for a great deal. These are Steve Maddens and I LOVE them. Normally around $70 or $80 got them for less than $20!

Okay these 3 pairs are all Report usually like $60 ish but I got them for less than $20 each. The pink are my new favorite but I love the brown and the black because I have a hard time with neutrals but these both have cute detailing that makes them different enough for me to like them:)

Okay these are my new favorite shoes that I got just a couple weeks ago for my new school shoes! Aren't they the cutest? Again Report normally $60 ish

I know these are goofy but what can I say. I am a crazy cat lady and they were only $6 of course because no one else would want them but they are Report as well. Normally around $45

Okay so these aren't name brand but they were cheap enough that I felt like they were worth it. These are Classified a brand you can just get at Forever Young but like I said they were cheaper. I can remember how much though.

These are new for school too. Way cute and same thing Report brand normally $60 got them for less than $20

I wear these all the time! Me and my sister got them because they are amazing and so comfortable. I believe that these are Report too. Neon pink adds to any outfit right? Normally $60 got them for less than $20

See. Neon pink does wonders!

I LOVE these because I got the same pair in a different color from Nordstrom for $65 and then found these at Ross for less than $20. Report brand

Same shoe again different pattern

And black Report flats. Hate black shoes but these are sparkly so it works.

Some Coral shoes my momma found there that I am so jealous of. I believe these are Steve Madden

Hope this gets you excited! Makes me want to go shopping!

Enjoy!

Sunday Sales

This week Target has some really good deals! Those t-shirts I always talk about are the cheapest I have ever seen this week. The scoop necks and v necks plus all their tank tops and camis are all $5. Can you believe that? Plus they have all those cute new ones now for all. Also denim is buy one get one half off! They also have cute cardigans for $15.

This week in the newspaper they had the Savvy Shoppers magazine that has the good coupons in it for Bella Ella. Remember you can use the coupons at Bella Ella Curvy too.

This is what the little magazine looks like. It's in the Sunday paper.

Awesome coupons this month!

 Good luck shopping and remember to keep checking Ross for shoes and Groop Dealz for random fun stuff Enjoy!

New great deal I just saw on Facebook! 40% off one item at Bella Ella and Bella Ella Curvy! Awesome deal!!! Today the 22nd only. . .