Recent Finds at J.Crew Factory + Sale

In all honesty, we don't have many places to shop in Southaven. I can take a 30 minute trip to Memphis to go to all of my favorite stores. But if I want to shop in town, my options include Dillard's, Old Navy, and J.Crew Factory. Therefore, I have become all too familiar with these stores. 

J.Crew Factory is currently offering 40-60% off summer styles & up to 60% off everything else. They're also offering an extra 40% off clearance, so I thought I'd share some of my favorites with you today! This sale is going on online only. I have learned that you can get better deals online than in store, so I will try things on in store and then purchase them online to get the best deals.

Ruffle Sleeve TopPom Pom Drawstring Shorts- These two pieces are going to be summer staples for me. They are both super comfortable. The ruffle sleeve top comes in black and white. I sized up to a large in this shirt because I do not like fitted t-shirts. The shorts come in black, red, and white. I obviously love the pom pom hem. They run true to size. I'm wearing a size medium. 

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Ruffle Shorts- Ebie has these in yellow, and I got them last year in pink from J.Crew! They are high waisted and have cute ruffles on the waist and pockets. They also come in navy, chambray, and light blue seersucker.

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Scalloped Shorts- These come in 3 prints. I have them in Owl. And they also come in 6 solid colors. These would be a great summer staple since they come in solid black and white too. They have a 4 inch inseam, so they are the perfect length.

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Scalloped Cami- Ebie's cami comes in 7 colors. It is such a great one to wear with shorts, skirts, or jeans. Love the scalloped details.

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Pom Pom Coverup- I feel like I have been talking about this coverup for months! Y'all know it's a favorite of mine. Fits true to size- I'm wearing a medium.

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Scalloped Coverup- I was so excited when I saw J.Crew Factory brought out this coverup. I actually got mine from J.Crew last year, and it is back this year in white, pink, and light blue! It fits true to size. I'm wearing a medium.

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Beaded Oval Statement Earrings- I can't find a picture of me wearing these, but I have them in pink and black. They are a great statement earring because they are lightweight and the perfect size. 

Hair Accessories- I like dressing up a casual ponytail or half up, half down hairstyle by using accessories. I have and love this tortoise barrette, this curved gold ponytail holder, and this tortoise ponytail holder.

Thanks so much for reading! Have a wonderful weekend!

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SHOP MORE FAVORITES

What I Learned from a Lesson with a Makeup Artist

Receiving blog post suggestions is something that makes me so happy. It's not always easy to come up with something new to write about every day. One of my friends suggested I interview a makeup artist and write about it. I loved that idea because makeup is definitely not an area of expertise for me. Thanks for the great idea Jackie! :) 

I thought Ebie's wedding would be the perfect time to talk to a makeup artist because we would already be getting our makeup done. I had the list of questions my friends and I came up with, and I was ready to go. However, it's actually not easy to look down and take notes while getting your makeup done, and wedding days are definitely time-sensitive days. At some point, my mom asked the fabulous makeup artist if she taught makeup lessons because that would be a great birthday gift for me. She said she did, and I decided I would put my laptop away, relieved to know that I could ask her all the questions during the makeup lesson!

The makeup artist I'm talking about is Courtney Matthews, and she worked for Bobbi Brown for years. If you're in the Mobile area, we highly recommend her! Her email is cocokat5712@gmail.com. She did our makeup for Ebie's wedding, and then she came over to our house in Mobile and gave my mom and me a makeup lesson. This was one of my very favorite birthday gifts!

I tried to consolidate my notes, but I took over 3 pages of Word document notes while she was giving us our makeup lesson. I learned SO MUCH! When you see words in Italics, you can click on them to be taken directly to the product mentioned. 

Skincare

Before we even got started on makeup, Courtney gave us a whole spiel on skincare. To sum things up, she said the skin is so important, so start there- get your skin looking great and makeup will be so much easier.

-Use a gentle cleanser every day but substitute an exfoliating cleanser twice a week.

-Also use toner if you’re prone to breakouts because it makes your face extra clean. You can use it to clean your face after exercise. Try to find an alcohol free toner that is very gentle, like a micellar water because it freshens up your skin.

-Double cleansing is something that is trending right now. What this means is you use a cleansing oil to absorb makeup, wipe it off, & rinse it off and then use a cleaning cleanser like Cetaphil.

-After cleansing, apply serum- use a dropper to put it on fingertips, rub your fingers together to warm it up and make it body temperature, press it into your skin, and let it seep in.

-Next, use a little bit of moisturizer and rub your fingers together to let it warm up to body temperature. This allows it to seep into your skin better.You want to use your hands to mimic your own body. This strategy takes advantage of the products we buy. Courtney used Brandless facial lotion. She said every product by Brandless is around $3. They wanted to create a company that has high quality products that are affordable.

-Courtney could not suggest eye cream more. She said it is SO important. Use the tiniest amount, rub it together between your fingers to warm it up before pressing it in there where the puffiness is. Bobbi Brown Eye Cream is the one Courtney used. It helps with so many things, but one thing in particular- it makes concealer go on smoother.

-Don't have a lazy night! If you don’t want breakouts, jump up and do the bare minimum before going to bed- cleanse your face and put on moisturizer at least. It takes 2 weeks for your skin to recover when you do not take makeup off before bed!

-Don't be scared of oils- use plant oils or organic coconut oil to take off makeup or for hydrating purposes. 

Makeup

Outfit Details: Robe | Leggings

-Concealer- start with concealer under your eyes to brighten. She said if you start with concealer, you will find that you don’t have to go overboard with foundation. You want the concealer to brighten and lift your eye, like an eyelift without surgery. I’m in between colors of my Tarte Shape Tape concealer, so both colors together worked the best to conceal the circles under my eyes. Courtney used a cream blending brush, but she said you can also just use a regular concealer brush and then pat with your fingers. She also reemphasized the importance of hydrating before using it.

-Foundation- Courtney used a Bobbi Brown foundation stick in warm sand. It's very versatile. You can use a foundation brush or pat with your fingers. Bobbi Brown trains her employees to use their fingers a lot and not a beauty blender because beauty blenders waste so much product. Foundation can be applied on your whole face, but make sure to go around your concealer.

-Powder- use something that is as colorless as possible so you don’t look like you have a ton of makeup on. Powder should just be used to keep the shine down. Courtney said the concealer and foundation combo was enough for me. She said I could apply powder if I got shiny, but she suggested that I not use it on a day to day basis.

-Bronzer is supposed to be color correcting and not give you a tan. It should only be used on the cheekbones and then leftover product can be swept lightly over your forehead (my bronzer has shimmer, and I definitely don’t want that all over my face). You have to have a really good bronzer brush. It is worth the money because it is shaped properly and has softer bristles so its not grabbing tons of color. It is lightly putting color on our face. We want it to go on as sheer as possible, and then we can use leftover bronzer to warm up nose, under chin, and rest of face to bring the color up from your chest.

-Blush- concentrate on the apple of your face. Come up the cheekbone making downwards strokes. Use a blush brush. My color is Bobbi Brown pale pink. My mom's is dessert rose or apricot or coral shimmer. My blush is from high school and needs to be replaced. It does not necessarily go bad. It just loses pigment over time. Another type of blush that can be used is a pot rouge. Courtney called this the best purse product because it can be used on cheeks and lips. It's the same color but looks a little bit different on cheeks and lips. You just tap your finger in it and apply. Courtney’s favorite is Maui.

-Eyebrows- Courtney used an eye cream pencil and said start at the inner part and go out. Do it little by little on each side and then use eyeshadow with a brow brush to fill in. Courtney used Bobbi Brown wheat. She said it lifts your eyes and makes you look more awake.

-Eyeshadow- I have the Urban Decay Naked 2 palette. Courtney said press your eyeshadow into your eye to concentrate it into your eyelid. If you’re feeling diva like, don’t use concealer first so you can go back under your eyes to cover the fallout and you don’t have to do it twice. Start with Bone for a good base shadow (no shimmer) to mimic the color of your skin. This takes the color out of your eyelid. Apply it all over from eyelid to eyebrow. Then, press in Half Baked all over lower lid. Build it with Copper in the corner and bring it lightly to inner eye. Then go over that with Snakebite. Start in the corner again and then all over the crease. Blend it out in the corner so it doesn’t stay too concentrated and chop your eye. Blend it outwards and upwards to look more like your eye sockets.

-Eyeliner- Nothing is going to brighten your eye up like black. If you don’t want black, go as dark brown as possible. Start at the outside and stay right at the base of the lashline and go all the way across as far as you have lashes. Then, you can go over it and draw more of a line or cateye if that is your thing. Courtney used Bobbi Brown gel liner with an ultra fine eyeliner brush. She suggests using a waterproof eyeliner and only putting it on the top.

-Mascara- The best drugstore mascara is Loreal Voluminous. It's great in waterproof and regular. Super helpful tip- don’t pump your wand! It puts a bunch of air and bacteria in there. The more air that gets in there, the thicker it gets. Courtney said she also loves Bobbi Brown smoky eye mascara and said to never redip mascara because there is plenty of product on your wand to do two coats on each eye. After doing 2 good coats on top, graze whats left on the bottom. Use very little on the bottom lashes so it doesn’t pull you down.

-Lips- No matter the color, when you choose a lipstick, make sure it does something for you, and it's not just a color on your face. Don’t let it take away from your eye color. Courtney used Bobbi Brown lip color. She used a basic lip brush, and that always makes lipstick stay on longer because it is pressing it into the lips. She said my lips are very defined, so I don’t necessarily need a lipliner. However, she did use a lipliner to fill my lips in at Ebie's wedding before lipstick, so that it would last longer. Wrong lip colors take the attention away from your eyes, so you want a color that will compliment your eyes! 

I learned SO much and clearly tried to be as thorough with my notes as I could. I'm so excited to share this with you! I hope it helps! Thanks so much for reading! Have a great day!

Outfit Details: My Mom's Dress | My Dress (similar) | My Sandals

SHOP THE MAKEUP:

10 Things Tuesday: My Summer Wish List

I was watching the news yesterday, and apparently we are breaking all kinds of weather records. They were saying we went straight from winter/early spring to summer with maybe a week of spring. That was not the best news I've heard because spring is my favorite, but regardless- summer weather is upon us with temps in the 90s already! 

So today I'm happy to be back with a 10 Things Tuesday post and share some things I've had my eye on lately. You can click on any of the pictures to shop them!

In the picture below I am wearing the dress I talked about above... and I am wearing it with my Lisi Lerch earrings that I constantly wear. When I find something I love, I wear it over and over and over again. :)

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It was hard for me to narrow my list down to just 10 items, but these are my very favorite items on my wishlist at the moment. I tried to narrow it down further and choose just 1, but it was not possible for me. Do you have a favorite?? Thanks so much for reading! Have a great day!

Recent Finds at Loft + Loft Moms Day Sale

Happy Mother's Day weekend to all you mamas out there! I hope your weekend is spent doing all the things you love to do! I'm thinking that there will be lots of amazing sales happening this weekend in honor of Mother's Day. I know my mom loves to take advantage of a good sale. :)

Loft is having a sale for Mother's Day, and I have found the most adorable things from there lately! Parker gave me gift cards to 3 stores for my birthday- Anthropologie, Indigo, and lululemon. So while I was checking out those 3 stores at the Shops of Saddle Creek, I decided to pop into Loft. Of course I found more there than I did anywhere else. I'm excited to share my finds with you today, especially while they are on sale!

To get 30% off plus an extra 10% off, use code LOVEMOM at checkout!

Outfit 1- Top | Shorts Outfit 2- Dress Outfit 3- Top | Shorts

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Dress- This dress is by Lou & Grey and super comfy! It fits true to size- I got a size medium.

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Ruffle Shorts- I knew I had to have these as soon as I saw them! The neutral color makes them go with everything, and the material makes them appear a little dressy. The ruffle is my favorite part. These will be worn on repeat all spring and summer!

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Flutter Sleeve Top- I have worn this 3 times since I got it! The flutter sleeves are just adorable! It runs a little big, so I sized down to a small.

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Double Frayed White Jeans- My favorite white jeans of the season were restocked! They were completely sold out, and Loft just brought them back! If you haven't gotten them, I HIGHLY suggest them. Everybody who has told me they purchased them has had the best things to say about them! They are the most flattering and cute white jeans! I do suggest sizing down. Mine are size 27.

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Embroidered Blouse- I have a thing with white tops. I love them. The rainbow embroidery makes this one a little different and so cute! This one runs true to size. I''m wearing a medium.

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Pink Beaded Top- This picture doesn't do a good job of capturing the cutest part of this top. The beading around the neck and sleeves is adorable! This one runs a little big. I'm wearing a size small.

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Eyelet Swing Top- Another adorable white top that is such a great closet staple! This one would be cute with pants, shorts, or a skirt. It's the perfect top to take you from work to play. I sized down to a small in this one.

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Striped Romper- I am not typically a romper lover, but I actually really liked this one! It's pretty conservative and a great length! The tie around the waist is super flattering, and I obviously love the flutter sleeves. This one runs true to size. I'm wearing a size medium.

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Do you have a favorite? I can't choose just one. My favorites are the striped dress and the ruffle shorts. And now that I know the white jeans were restocked, I have to add them to my favorites list too! Thanks so much for reading! Have a wonderful weekend!

SHOP THE POST:

More Loft Finds I'm Loving

One Piece Swimsuits for the Win!

Hello! I am so sorry I have been MIA lately! The craziness of weddings and bachelorette parties and travelling and life has caught up with me, so I had to take a little break from blog posts. However, I am back and hoping to get right back to my old routine! Now- onto today's post!

I have honestly not owned a one piece since the swim team days until I got one on clearance at Target at the end of last summer. I fell in love with it and decided I would get more into the whole one piece thing this year. I got this one for my birthday last month, and it is the only swimsuit I have worn so far this year. The 3 times I have been to the beach, I have worn this same gingham, ruffle, off the shoulder swimsuit. To say I love it would be an understatement.

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Shop My Look- Swimsuit // Beach Bag // Sandals // Sunglasses // Towel

However, I do believe I should add to my one piece collection. I actually stumbled upon this one yesterday and LOVED it! It comes in black and a really cute yellow, and the textured fabric makes it so flattering! I am definitely ordering black and most likely ordering yellow too. 

I'm sharing other cute one pieces I've had my eye on below! Are you into one pieces?!

Thanks so much for reading! Have a great day!

Mother's Day Gift Ideas

Mother's Day is right around the corner, and I have enlisted the help of my mom to create this post for you! She has some items I'm sharing today and would like to have others! Click on any of the items in the collage below to be taken directly to the link!

I want to point out some things about a few of the items in the collage above. The blanket in the first row is extremely soft and made even cuter with a monogram! My mom, mother-in-law, sister, and I all have and love it! 

My mom is not a coffee drinker, so that coffee maker in the first row would be a terrible gift for her. However, if you have a coffee-loving mama, Parker and I just upgraded to this coffee maker when our 5 year old Keurig bit the dust, and we cannot say enough positive things about it! This version is a little less pricy and looks amazing too!

My mom just purchased the makeup brush set in the bottom row of the collage, She said it was packaged in the cutest way and comes with a great variety of brushes for under $10! Throw in the under $5 makeup cleaner, and this would make a gift we would love to receive! Especially if it was thrown into the under $50 scalloped pink tote (that also comes in ivory!

If you are not familiar with Coton Colors, then the velcro on the soap dispenser in the last row might have seemed a little strange. We LOVE Coton Colors! You buy a base which has a piece of velcro on it (the soap dispenser in this case), and then you get attachments that have velcro on the back. The attachment can be stuck onto the base, and they can be changed out with each season or celebration.

I'll include some bases and attachments below, so you can get a better picture of what I'm talking about. All of the bases and attachments I'm linking are mini. If you order these, make sure you order a mini base and mini attachments or big base and big attachments. One base and a few attachments would make the most adorable gift!

Coton Colors Mini Bases

Coton Colors Mini Attachments

I could not fit all of my gift ideas into one collage, so I will include more options below! Thanks so much for reading! Have a great day!

More Mother's Day Gift Ideas

White Dresses for Spring & Summer

Whether you are a bride, graduating, attending Baccalaureate, or just want a fresh new white dress for spring and summer, I'm sharing the best options with you today! I love a crisp white dress and have done some serious research on the world wide web to round up the cutest ones out there at the moment!

I have grouped them into 3 categories: Under $100, Under $150, and Over $150. I typically choose to purchase items in the first category, or maybe the second category if I'm treating myself. I don't make routine purchases in the third category. However, when purchasing a dress for something like graduation or a bridal shower, I do allow myself to look in the third category. Life's all about balance, right?! 

White Dresses Under $100

The white dress Ebie wore to her rehearsal is currently on sale plus an additional 30% off, making it under $83!

The white dress Ebie wore to her rehearsal is currently on sale plus an additional 30% off, making it under $83!

White Dresses Under $150

White Dresses Over $150

Do you have a favorite? If I had to narrow it down to one splurge dress and one not as much of a splurge dress, I'd have to choose this one (splurge) and this one (not as much of a splurge). Thanks so much for reading! Have a great day!

April Favorites

I think I can say April has been the craziest, busiest, most fun, and celebratory month of my life! It started with Easter, then Ebie's wedding, then my 29th birthday, then my friend Kelly's bachelorette party in Orange Beach, then my 1 year blogiversary, then my friend Alexa's bachelorette party in Highlands, then my 3 year wedding anniversary, and my dad's birthday. Parker and I stayed home in Southaven this weekend, and it was SO nice to get caught up on life and spend a relaxing weekend with our pups!

But anyway, on to my favorites from April! I'm going to share my favorites first, and then I'm going to share my readers' favorites (based on my analytics)!

My Favorites!

Favorite Dress- My mom got me this dress for my birthday, and I actually wore it to the Florabama on my birthday when we were at the beach for my friend Kelly's bachelorette party! Love the color, ruffles, and tie. I don't always think wrap dresses are super flattering on me, but I do really like the fit of this one!

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Favorite Top- I've been more of a dress girl this month, but this top is such a great basic to have in the closet. It comes in white, black, and yellow. I love the pretty eyelet!

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Favorite Bottoms- Old Navy Rockstar jeans are some of my favorites, so I grabbed a fresh new white pair a couple of weeks ago. I recently found out that they came out with white Rockstar jeggings!!! I'm definitely going to have to grab a pair of these soon because they're selling out so fast- they are the most comfortable pants ever! Other outfit details- top | wedges

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Favorite Coverup- Ebie gave her bridesmaids this coverup, and it is adorable! It comes in so many colors and is under $17!! Ebie's outfit details- bathing suit | sarong

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Favorite Shoes 1- My mom gave me these before Ebie's wedding, and I have already gotten so much use out of them. I'm wearing them again this coming weekend for a wedding. They are the perfect heel height and neutral color!

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Favorite Shoes 2These yellow mules are a little different than what I typically wear, but I LOVE them! I have been so into yellow lately, and I think these add so much fun to any outfit! Other outfit details- dress

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Favorite Beauty Product- One of my birthday gifts was a makeup lesson- so fun! I have a huge blog post coming soon where I am sharing all the things I learned. One thing the makeup artist continuously reinforced was the importance of eye cream. It helps with puffiness, application of underage concealer, and so many other things! Other outfit details- dress

Readers' Favorites!

-Most clicked on item: Pink Top

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-Most purchased item: Coverup

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-Most viewed blog post: Ebie's Wedding Weekend via iPhone Photos

-Most saved pin on Pinterest: My Shopbop Sale Picks

-Social Media Platform that Gave My Blog the Greatest Amount of Views- Facebook (thanks again Mom, Mrs. Carol, Ms. Elinor and Russ for your daily shares!!!)

-Most liked Insta post:

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Thanks so much for reading! Have a great day!

Shop the Post:

A Wedding Guest Etiquette Guide for my 3 Year Anniversary

Parker and I are celebrating 3 years of marriage today! We have had so many special occasions in the month of April that we are honestly happy to celebrate our anniversary in a low key way at home. I never thought I would be a low key kind of celebrator, but this month has been so packed full of fun that we are both looking forward to a fun dinner in Memphis and a weekend at home with our pups!

I have learned so much about weddings in the past few years. The topic of wedding etiquette has come up several times lately because I have quite a few loved ones with weddings happening this spring. So, I'm sharing some wedding guest etiquette with you today! These tips are not meant to make anyone feel bad if they haven't done these things, but they are things I wish someone would have told me in my earlier days of wedding guest-ing. 

1. Send in your RSVP as soon as you get your invitation. There's usually a deadline, but the earlier you can send in your response, the better. Bonus points- if you're a close friend of the bride, send her (or her mom if you're friends with her) a text and let her know how beautiful the invitation is! 

2. If your invitation does not give you a +1, then do not bring a guest. This goes for children too. If the invitation does not state the kids' names or say + Family, then they are more than likely not invited.

3. If you receive an invitation, send a gift. This applies to everyone, including close friends. I say this because I feel guilty to this day about not giving a couple of my closest friends wedding gifts. When I was younger, I somehow did not know I was supposed to give a gift because my parents always did. I will do my best to make up for my mistake with baby gifts one day! If you are new to the wedding scene, learn from my mistake and make sure you always send the bride and groom a gift! Ebie was just telling me about how some people who were not invited to her small beach wedding sent her a gift, and she will remember that kind gesture for life!

4. Do NOT wear white! The no white after Labor Day rule is no longer a thing. White can now be worn all year long, EXCEPT for at a wedding. Give the bride her day to shine in white and save your white for any other day in which there is not a wedding or bridal shower happening.

5. Make sure you're on time for the ceremony! There's no way to sneak into a wedding quietly. 

6. Turn off your phone, or at least make sure it is on silent, during the ceremony. 

7. Dress modestly and act appropriately. If you are questioning your dress, choose a different one! I have some wedding guest dress options linked at the bottom of this post!

8. Stay out of the photographer's way. If the bride has hired a photographer, let the photographer get her shot before stepping in to take an iPhone pic. Also, don't ask the photographer to take an iPhone pic for you.

9. Speak to the bride and groom, but try not to take too much of their time. You can always find them again later, but they have a lot of people they need to speak to! 

10. Have fun! One of the best parts of my wedding day was getting out on the dance floor with all of my family and friends. Every bride wants her wedding day to be fun for everyone. Do what you can to bring the fun!

I would love to hear if you have any other tips you think I should add to this list! Right after I started my blog last year, I wrote a blog post called 2 Main Tips for Brides on my 2nd Wedding Anniversary. You can click here to check that one out! Thanks so much for reading! Have a wonderful day!

Wedding Guest Dresses

Pom Pom Coverup Perfection!

It's been a busy week celebrating my blogiversary! If you haven't entered the giveaway to win a painting by my mom, $50 gift card to Nordstrom, and $50 gift card to Target, click here to check out the post that explains how to enter! It runs through tomorrow, and I will announce the winner on Sunday! 

Now, onto today's post- I'm sharing the 2 coverups I have gotten so far this year because beach season is right around the corner/ currently happening for some people! They both have pom poms, which I am clearly a fan of! 

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