The Dainty Days
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​The Dainty Days


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Seersucker and Coral Pucker

5/19/2015

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Yesterday felt so much like Spring that I had to break out another romper! It seems that I'll have to cover up for the remainder of the week, so I'm glad I took advantage of the weather when I could. 
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Photos by Sarah Knuth
My seersucker romper ($56) is from Dottie, and it fits my short torso perfectly! I usually have to ghetto rig rompers that don't have adjustable straps, but not this one. I wanted to pull out the white of the stripes and also the buttons, so I paired it with a white jean jacket. This one is Kut from the Kloth brand, which I got on clearance from Marshall's in Anderson. That is a hidden gem in a dying town, I highly suggest stopping in if you find yourself nearby!
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My lipstick is MAC Ravishing, and it's the only coral I've found that really seems to suit my complexion. This is the lip color I wore on our wedding day, so I really only break it out when I feel like it really adds something to my look! It will always hold a special little place in my heart, and add something sweet b to whatever I wear it with.
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I love this romper for the back detail! The little ruffle between the straps is darling without making me look like a three year old. This is a win win in my life! I layered my hot pink bralette under it because I liked the contrast of the colors. This one is from Victoria's Secret a few years back but we do have a similar one at Dottie right now! 
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I started at my side part and braided down toward my ear until I turned the braid toward the base of my neck on the other side, and braided the rest of my hair all the way down. Then I added a sparkly headband (this one is from Claire's) and twisted the braid into a bun! It's an easy go-to for second day hair as well, just in case your brain is too big to shave off some of your own hair.
 A few weeks back I actually managed to shave off some ends of my hair while shaving my armpits in the shower...You read that right, my dumb ass actually didn't realize that some of my hair was too close to my armpit until I pulled the razor away and about died when I looked at the amount of hair on the razor. After what had happened really sank in, I decided to make braids and buns my greatest ally until I can get into my hairstylist! I decided to pair my romper with a simple Dutch braid into a bun for a sweet girly look.
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I was so excited to break out my baby pink Kate Spade for the warmer months ahead! I love how the soft hue complements the cornflower blue of the stripes. I'm guessing it will look great with a tan if ever I attain one! 
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My two tone neutral wedges are from Target a few years back. I love them because they are somewhere between a nude heel and a statement heel, and are still neutral so they go with most anything I 
want to wear them with! Wedges are a lifesaver for height challenged klutz's like myself. I can get a nice little boost without a fear of breaking one of my unpredictably weak ankles. 
 It was recently pointed out to me that I'm a neutrals girl, so I want to start incorporating more pops of color into my everyday outfits! What color combos are you loving at the moment?
Let me know!


Love,
Ashley
2 Comments

Natural Hair Care Routine

5/9/2015

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I've recently become obsessed with the concept of all things natural. I watched the documentary that quickly blew up my Facebook and Instagram with nothing but rave reviews-- Fed Up. This documentary (available on Netflix) is all about the obesity epidemic in America, especially in children. I feel that this documentary is aimed toward parents in order to incite them to action, to change their family's food habits. I am not yet in charge of another human's nutrition, but I feel like that makes this the perfect time to get my own nutrition under control! I have a voracious appetite for sugar (though according to the documentary, most Americans do since sugar is more addictive than cocaine!) that is nearly unmatched by anyone I know. I can happily eat gummy worms and Mountain Dew for breakfast, without experiencing any sort of sugar rush. I honestly just thought I had mad skill in sugar toothery, because I am a fool. Long story short, I have been inspired by this documentary to cut added sugar out of my diet, hopefully to be followed by caffeine! Furthermore, my newfound focus on my health has also carried over to my hair care. My mother in law told me that my hair seems lacking (to myself!) because when I eat it is usually sweets or restaurant food. I didn't realize how true this is until I started eating cleanly! Not only does my body feel so much better, my hair is shinier and softer as well. 
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And when I say that, I mean my hair as it is, without any heat styling or products. I'm not sure whether to chalk it up to laziness or ingenuity, but I've taken a break from styling my hair this week and I am so glad I did! I have gotten the nicest compliments from sweet customers about my hair this week, more than I've ever gotten from curling or straightening my hair. 
I hear that the best thing for your hair is to go days without washing it, and using non-sudsy shampoo in lieu of traditional shampoos. I really can't handle that myself, but I do try and wash my hair every other day rather than daily. I wash my hair with Fekkai PrX Reparative shampoo (the blue one), focusing on my scalp and largely ignoring my ends. I use Fekkai Full Volume conditioner (the yellow one) to condition my hair. This conditioner is incredibly light, and has a consistency close to water. This was definitely an adjustment for me, but I'm glad I tried it because it has worked wonders on my hair! After I'm done, I wrap my hair in a towel for about 20 minutes or until I go to bed. And that's it! When I wake up, no matter how fuzzy it looks, I leave it alone other than parting it with my hands. 
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As I've previously mentioned, I do a conditioning treatment once a week with Skinny and Co. coconut oil. This leaves my hair silky and strong; it's my absolute favorite!
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As much as I really do enjoy styling my hair with braids, buns, and other non heat styles, I mostly appreciate the results I see in my hair health! 
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To keep the focus on my hair, I kept today's outfit minimalistic! My white cotton romper is from Dottie, available online and in stores now! The spaghetti strap detailing combined with the lace 
on the bottom of the shorts keeps this piece interesting and pretty without overdoing it, and I love it for its simplicity.





My dainty pink flower crown is from Claire's, and I paired it with my go-to Dutch braid to pull my hair out of my face. 

I get little fuzzy curls around my face, but the rest of my hair is mostly straight but frizzy. I don't let it go au naturale every day, but I've found that the more often I can leave it be, the better it looks when I do heat style it! 
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Photos by Sarah Knuth
What ways do you all wear your hair when you're avoiding heat styling? I'd love to braid it damp and undo it in the morning, but that one really doesn't work for me...are there any other ideas that I'm missing? 


Let me know!


Love,
Ashley
1 Comment

April Favorites and Welcoming May!

5/6/2015

1 Comment

 
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May is here!
...finally...
I think the warm weather is here to stay! It was actually hot today which is so crazy! I was so silly to think that I could get away with retiring my long pants in April. Or ever really, as I far prefer pants to shorts! For this boho outfit, we ventured over to Glenns Valley Nature Park and I'd say it was well worth the nine school zones I managed to drive through on the way! The setting went with my outfit splendidly, and luckily Sarah got me laughing and happy again before our romp through the woods!

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My dream catcher tank ($30) is from Dottie, and I am absolutely in love with it! It was one of those pieces that we pulled out of the box and I immediately fawned over. As you can see, this is yet another
longer shirt that I styled as a dress! There are so many pieces I can't really pull off because they are too long on me, so I feel it's only fair that I get to 
manipulate some styles to work in my (short girl) favor!

My cream colored crochet fringe 
cardi ($42) is also from Dottie, from last summer! I love the subtle floral pattern in the crochet that you only
really notice if you look very carefully.
This is a sweater that I love for the warmer months, as it is the only longer one I have that is breathable enough to bear the heat! Air conditioning is almost always too cold for my liking, so I love to have something like this handy. 
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My second day curls are thanks to my Conair YouCurl Big Waves wand. I love the loose, effortless look it gives my hair! I just wrap fairly good sized pieces around the wand, hold for 7-10 seconds,  drop the curls, and run through them with my fingers. 
My cream flower headband is from Claire's, which is oddly enough one of my favorite places to shop for cheap and fun boho hair accessories! I'm probably too old to even walk in there anymore...but no one has stopped me yet so I'll just keep doing my thing.
My taupe platform booties are the Jeffrey Campbell Lita's ($160) in "taupe suede". This was a huge splurge for me, and even though I don't get nearly enough use out of them to warrant the price, I do think they're my soul shoe (which means they're subliminally worth it). They are a fun way to change up my outfits, and I love the funky look they provide!
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Another piece I added to this outfit is my absolute holy grail bralette ($18) from Dottie! It is the best neutral blush color so it matches most everything, and has spaghetti straps! Though I was vehemently against low armhole tops when they first surfaced, I'm slowly but surely coming around to the trend! I'll take any excuse to wear a lace bralette, it's those little details that make or break an outfit!
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I figured the first post of a new month would be the perfect time to mention all the things I enjoyed most in the past month! April was a psychotically busy month, but really that's half the fun...
Book: 
John Green's Paper Towns has captured my heart, and I've not even finished the book yet! I love that the author is from Indiana, even though this book isn't set here. I feel like fellow Hoosiers just get it even more than other authors seem to. If you haven't read it yet, please go pick it up before the movie comes out! I can tell you right now, the book will trump the movie.


Song: 
"Fight Song" by Rachel Platten has made my month! If you're feeling a bit ornery, you could totally make fun of this song, but if you need some motivation you'll probably be crying by the end of it. 


Fashion:
I've basically just been along for the ride this month, wearing whatever the weather permits. One thing I have noticed that I've reached for an awful lot this month are my light wash ripped jeans from Dottie! I always joke that everything goes with destroyed skinnies and booties, but apparently I believe in that more than I realized!


Beauty: 
I have been feeling really uninspired by makeup this past month, so if you have anything you've been loving please send recommendations my way! Except not lippies, I have enough to last multiple lifetimes. Just kidding please send only lippie suggestions my way because I LOVE THEM. I've got a new one on the way by Colour Pop, can't wait to see if it winds up in next month's favorites!


Hair:
I've become absolutely obsessed with hair care this month, as I want to restore my hair to its former glory! I only styled my hair in college when I cheered games, and my now near-daily heat styling has really taken a toll! My new all-time hair product is the Skinny & Co coconut oil I put on my hair once a week. It is more moisturizing than any of the expensive conditioning masks I've purchased, and is the only treatment to leave a noticeable change! I've also been loving fishtail braids into buns this month, though I'm still mastering the Dutch fishtail on myself!


Scent: 
I'm usually not much of a perfume girl, but I absolutely lost my crap over Bath and Body Works French Lavender and Honey this month. I now own the body wash, body creme, body lotion, and perfume. I probably would've bought anything as long as it had that scent attached! It's a soft scent but it packs enough punch that I can smell it throughout the day!


What did I miss this month? I'm always ready to try new beauty related products so let me know any recommendations you may have! Thank you so much to everyone that has posted the sweetest comments so far, they mean the world to me!


Love,
Ashley
1 Comment
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    Ashley

    Behind the dainty days is a whole lot of planning. And coffee.
    Here is a look at both, and everything between.

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